


Coming Home

by JustBecause86



Series: Home [1]
Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Alex and Sam in later chapters, Don’t copy to another site, F/F, FBI, Lena has been through a lot, Maggie and Alex are best friends, Married Kara/Lena, Murder Mystery with some fluff and humor, Past Rape/Non-con, Serial Killers, SuperCorp, alternative universe, bau, slow burn agentreign
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-15
Updated: 2020-01-15
Packaged: 2020-09-01 14:29:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 16
Words: 88,860
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20259592
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustBecause86/pseuds/JustBecause86
Summary: Alex Danvers is Sheriff in a place most people can’t even find on the map, but this is home and after her father's death someone had to pick up the mantle and become the new Sheriff.Kara Danvers on the other hand couldn’t wait to leave the expectations that her father's legacy put on the sisters far behind her. Having left right after college, moving to Virginia and starting a career with the FBI, it’s been five long years since she last came home.Now with a wife and daughter, Kara makes the trip back across the country for what was supposed to be a short visit. Her plans however are crossed by a series of mysterious murders that turns their peaceful little hometown upside down. The Danvers sisters work together to solve this case and along the way they discover a connection to their own past.ORThe Danvers sisters crime fighting/murder mystery AU featuring married supercorp





	1. Chapter 1

Late October in Bella Rosa, Montana was always the same. Cold with almost always a few snowflakes lingering lightly in the air, like someone had shaken a snow globe and the last few remaining flakes refused to fall.

Tonight was no exception to that rule, and as Sheriff Alex Danvers steps out of her police cruiser, her breath clouds the air in front of her. She takes in the scene before her as she closes the door behind her, pulling her knit hat down further over her ears. Very rarely does she regret keeping her hair cut so short, except for nights like tonight. Since her time in the Army, Alex had kept her auburn hair in the same manner; short, off her neck and neat all the way around.

An ambulance and fire truck were parked along the side of the highway, red and white flashing lights casting an eerie glow on the trees around them. Despite the years Alex has spent working in the Sheriff’s Department, she’s never found a better way to describe how emergency lights make the woods around them seem to come to life.

She shrugs her shoulders, centering her coat better across her shoulders. Alex had been a scrawny kid most of her life but during high school she had joined a few sports teams and had managed to add muscle to her frame. She’d never been the six-pack kind of person, but she was fit and had managed to maintain that even now. The military had taught her to like running and she still did it daily.

Chucking to herself, she thinks about how much colder it will be in a few short weeks. When real winter begins.

Moving away from her own cruiser she spots a second Sheriff’s Department cruiser parked next to the ambulance. It had been her Deputy, one of the first on the scene, that had called her all the way out here.

“What do we have Craig?” she asks as she approaches the Deputy who is standing inside the open door of his cruiser.

“I’m not entirely sure yet Sheriff,” Craig answers as he closes the door and moves to walk with her. “911 received a call for an accident. We all got here about the same time and found her.”

“Her?” Alex asks as they reach the side of the highway. This far outside of town and their little two-lane highway is a straight drop down for a few feet before flattening out and leading into the woods, an area of the highway well known for accidents that end up over the embankment.

Walter Norris, the County Coroner, stands along the side of the road with two of his assistants, hunched inside his winter jacket.

“What’s the hold up Wally?” Alex asks with a smile. “You aren’t afraid of a little hill.”

“Not in the slightest,” the man returns the smile. “Seems your medic friend down there didn’t want anything disturbed before you got here.”

“Alright,” Alex says slowly, admittedly confused.

The fire department had tied a few ropes off on the front of their engine to use for easier up and down access of the area. Leaning over the guardrail Alex peers down the embankment and sees one of the Medics walking back towards the ropes, flashlight in hand.

“Maggie, you have eyes on the vehicle?” Alex calls down to the other woman.

“Small problem with that Sheriff,” Maggie calls up. “There is no vehicle,” leaning her head back to look up at Alex she adds, “You’re going to want to see this.”

“Right,” Alex mumbles pulling her coat off and reaching for one of the ropes.

“You want a harness Sheriff?” a young firefighter asks.

“Where’s the fun in that?” Alex asks with a grin, as she hands her coat to Craig and climbs over the guardrail.

Using the rope to keep her descent slowed, Alex slides to a stop next to Maggie, who is patiently waiting for her at the bottom of the embankment.

“Well that was fun,” she remarks with a grin at the Sheriff.

“Hey, being Sheriff can’t be all paperwork and boring meetings,” Alex shrugs as she brushes her hands off on her pants, feeling just the slightest bit of burn from the rope. “Now, what’s going on?”

“About forty-five minutes ago we got a call for an accident out here, caller refused to give any information other than to say there was a woman hurt,” Maggie explains as she leads Alex into the woods. “We got here but couldn’t find anything on the road or down here. So, I figured I would look in the woods, just to be sure. There were no signs of a vehicle at all though. No broken branches or torn up earth.” Despite Maggie having only lived in town for the past four years, her history with Alex went back over ten. Even with that history between them, it still managed to impress Alex how observant the Medic remained.

“Very observant,” Alex agrees as she follows the medic a few feet further before they come to a stop.

“No vehicle, no track marks and no one else around,” Maggie says looking down at the ground in front of them. “Just her.”

They had reached a small clearing, no bigger than a six by six area, with a light layer of fresh snow. Carefully placed in the center of the clearing, laying on her back, was a young woman. She was dressed in a simple white dress, something much better suited for the summer, and her hands were folded modestly across her stomach. At first glance one might thing the young woman was merely sleeping here in the clearing. Only upon closer examination it becomes obvious that her chest does not rise and fall with breathing and her skin and lips are a light shade of blue.

The thing that strikes Alex the most is the unusual cut marks that cover the girl’s body, at least what Alex is able to see.

Alex squats down next to the body, pulling out her own flashlight in an attempt to get a better look. From what Alex can see it looks as though someone had started in the palm of the girls hands and cut in a spiral pattern up her arm until it disappears beneath the sleeve of the dress. The same pattern is repeated on the other arm and both legs.

“Did you touch the body?” Alex asks Maggie while still examining the body with her eyes.

“Only to check for a pulse,” Maggie states. “I retraced my steps as well when I left the body to make sure I didn’t contaminant anything more than I did.”

“Good,” Alex says as she looks at the girl’s face. Something about her seems familiar to Alex but she struggles to remember.

_A young woman, blonde hair laid out around her head, looking much like a halo of sorts, lays on a dirt floor in of an empty house. The heat from the desert around them seeping in through every crack it can find, making the uncomfortable scene even more so. Alex stands with the rest of her unit, observing the scene in front of them._

_“Any idea who she is?” the Major asks from Alex’s left._

_“No sir but it’s pretty obvious she’s not a local,” Alex states in a flat voice. She’d been stationed in Afghanistan with the Army for six months now, well in to her third tour of the country. "Could be a civilian contractor or even a federal employee."_

_“Any idea what the cause of death is?” the Major asks of the young Navy Corpsman squatted down next to the girl._

_“Not really my field sir,” Maggie says coming to her feet, “but these lacerations here on her arms aren’t deep enough to have caused death. A lot of pain yes but not death.”_

Alex shakes the faded memory away and sighs deeply, “This doesn’t make sense,” Alex mumbles still studying the body.

“I notified Wally and he’s on his way,” Maggie answers looking at Alex.

“He’s here already,” Alex says slowly, “said you didn’t want anyone touching the scene until I got here. I see why.”

“It’s uncanny,” Maggie agrees with a shrug. “I didn’t know what to make of it when I found her either.”

“It’s going to be a long night,” Alex mumbles standing to her full height and reaching for the radio strapped to her shoulder. “Dispatch, this is the Sheriff,” she speaks into it.

“Go ahead Sheriff,” the voice of the night dispatcher responds immediately.

“Jerry, send Steve out this way, we’re going to need a hand out here. And let Wally know he can head down here now” she adds, “Let all the other units on tonight know that we’re going to be tied up here and they need to help cover the county.”

“Copy that Sheriff,” Jerry replies instantly.

“Any idea who she is?” Maggie asks quietly when Alex drops her hand from the radio.

“Not a clue,” the Sheriff answers looking back at the body on the cold ground. She’s not the same girl from Alex’s memory but she’d triggered it and by the look on Maggie’s face it had triggered her as well. “We don’t get a whole lot of new faces here in town so she must have been traveling through.”

“Alex, I haven’t seen anything like this since…,” Maggie says in a low voice.

“Neither have I,” Alex agrees.

“You don’t think it’s the same person, do you?” Maggie asks after a moment passes.

“I have no idea,” Alex admits, “but we need to find out and soon.”

Several hours later, after the Coroner’s Office had taken the body under their care and Alex and her Deputies had photographed every inch of the scene and collected what little evidence there had been left, Alex sits behind her desk in the Sheriff’s Station.

Closing in on four in the morning and Alex was left with little to do until dawn broke. The autopsy was scheduled for early in the morning and the evidence they had collected couldn’t be taken to the lab until then as well.

Alex knew she should be sleeping right now or at the very least attempting to sleep. Instead she sat behind her desk studying pictures from the crime scene. She still wasn’t sure what is was about this woman that had triggered the memory in her or why it had happened in the first place.

It’s been years since I’ve let myself think of that case, Alex thinks to herself. Even longer since I thought of her.

“Any news?” a voice come from the doorway of Alex’s office startling her out of her thoughts.

“Jesus, Maggie, didn’t anyone ever teach you to knock,” Alex says a bit flustered.

“Sorry,” Maggie chuckles as she walks into the office and plops herself down in the chair across from Alex, her small frame barely making a sound on the old chair. Maggie clocked in at barely five feet two inches but made up for her lack of height with her personality, at least that’s what she told Alex in the past. “Thought you heard me walk in.”

“I didn’t realize that stealth training was part of what they teach you in Medic school,” Alex says as she steadies herself after being startled.

“Must have been all that time spent paling around with the SEALs in Afghanistan,” Maggie shrugs as she slumps down more in the chair. Moments like this often times make Alex think about the time she and Maggie had spent together while deployed in Afghanistan. While not serving in the same branch it was not uncommon for teams to be made up of all branches at any given time. Maggie looked much the same now as she had then, still well-muscled and strong. Her tan skin had, at times seemed lost in the desert landscape, now stood out against the stark winter nights here. Her long, black hair was most often pulled back into a ponytail, not unlike how it had been all those years ago.

“So humble. Must be something they teach you in the Navy huh?” Alex jokes with a smile.

“Wouldn’t know,” Maggie shrugs. “I skipped that class.”

Alex chuckles and reaches for the coffee mug on the corner of her desk. Taking a sip of the now ice cold coffee, she grimaces and sets it back down.

“Have there been any updates on the Jane Doe?” Maggie asks a moment later.

“You know better than that,” Alex answers with a chuckle. “I can’t even send the evidence out to the lab until morning.”

“It is morning,” Maggie counters with a grin, “but I know what you mean. That why you’re camping out in here? Waiting for the lab to open?” she adds lifting an eyebrow in question.

“Not exactly,” Alex shrugs, leaning back in her chair. “Anything about this bother you?”

“You kidding,” Maggie laughs shortly. “The whole damn thing bothers me and I’ve seen some crazy shit.”

“Fair enough,” Alex concedes, “but did she remind you of anyone?”

Maggie leans forward and reaches across Alex’s desk picking up one of the pictures of the girl, studying it for a moment before saying, “She’s a pretty girl but she looks like half the cute brunette you run into in lifetime.”

“Yea,” Alex replies absentmindedly.

“You know her?” Maggie asks replacing the picture.

“No,” Alex answers flatly then with a sigh adds, “She just reminds me of someone I used to know.”

“A good used to know or a bad?” Maggie asks as she observes the woman sitting across from her.

Alex chuckles, “Both.”

“Ah,” Maggie decides not to push the issue right now and chooses a safer route, “When’s the autopsy scheduled for?

“First thing in the morning,” Alex looks down at her watch to check the time again, “So in about another three hours or so.”

“Three hours, huh?” Maggie nods her head in understanding. “Well Sheriff, I think you need to at least attempt an hour or two of sleep.”

“That your professional medical opinion?” Alex smiles.

“As a matter of fact,” Maggie replies, coming to her feet, “it is. Come on Sheriff, I’ll walk you out.”

“You’re not giving me much choice in the matter, are you?” Alex sighs as she comes to her feet as well.

“Not really,” Maggie answers with a smile, “and what kind of friend would I be if I did anyway?”

“Funny,” Alex sighs pulling her coat off the back of her chair and heading out of the small office with Maggie.

“Do you want to get drinks tomorrow night, well tonight now I guess?” Maggie asks as they make their way through the small station.

“I’d love to, but my sister is coming into town tonight and I’m supposed to pick her and the family up from the airport.”

“Ah, the FBI Agent,” Maggie nods. “I haven’t had the privilege of meeting her yet. From what you’ve said about her though she might be pretty interested in the Jane Doe.”

“Probably,” Alex agrees with a chuckle as they walk out of the station and into the cold night air. Alex takes a deep breath and sighs, her breath causing a large cloud in front of her face. “Let’s just keep the feds out of this for the time being. That’s a headache I just don’t want yet.”

Maggie is silent for a moment before saying, “I know you don’t want the feds involved, and I completely understand that, but your sister might be a good source of knowledge. Not something you should dismiss without thinking about it.”

“Believe me, I’ve thought about it,” Alex admits, as the pair make their way to the small parking lot next to the station. “Do you ever wonder why it is you’ve lived in town for almost four years now and have never met my sister?” Alex asks.

Maggie frowns and shrugs, “Always figured she was out there somewhere being a super-secret agent or some shit like that.”

Alex chuckles, “Not too far off actually. She left here six years ago when she got accepted to the FBI Academy and she’s only been home to visit once since then.”

“It’s a demanding career,” Maggie tries, and winces a little when Alex gives her a doubtful look. “Look, I was barely in this town a month before I knew all about the Danvers and what kind of legacy your family has here. Maybe she just wanted a break from all that. Honestly, I’m not sure how you handle it all the time,” Maggie adds with a shrug as they stop next to Alex’s cruiser.

“Don’t typically thing about it all that much,” Alex pulls her keys out, “and that’s one of the reasons why I don’t want to drag Kara into this.”

“Fair enough,” Maggie concedes holding her hands up in surrender.

“Where’s your car?” Alex asks looking around the lot, realizing Maggie’s truck is nowhere to be seen.

“Left it at the station. Figured a walk is this lovely weather couldn’t hurt,” Maggie replies rubbing her gloved hands over her cold cheeks, “Turns out I forgot you convinced me to move to the coldest place in the country,” she laughs walking backwards a few steps.

“All I ever said was that you should come out and that maybe you’d enjoy it,” Alex laughs at her friend. “I never expected you to actually show up.”

“Ye of little faith,” Maggie chuckles then stops and asks, “What’s the other reason?”

Alex tilts her head in confusion a second before she realized what Maggie is asking.

“Because I only get to see my niece twice a year and if my sister-in-law thinks Kara’s going to come here just to work she’ll kill me,” Alex answers with a smile.

“Fair enough. Get some sleep Sheriff,” Maggie says as she turns and heads out of the lot.

“You too,” Alex calls after the other woman before unlocking her cruiser and sliding in.

Maggie’s only response is a laugh as she rounds the fence surrendering the parking lot and heads down the street. Alex closes the door and lets her head rest on the back of her seat for a moment, taking another deep breath. Alex had a feeling that it was asking too much for this case to somehow be wrapped up before six that evening, when she was supposed to be picking her sister and family up from the airport.

That feeling only got worse as she walked in to the Coroner’s Office at nine that morning, having managed two hours of sleep and a shower. The Office was located in the basement of the County Building causing it to feel gloomy and dark due to the lack of light.

“I still don’t understand why they insist on keeping you all down here in the dark,” Alex says as she walks up to the greying man standing in the doorway of an office. “Always reminds me of a dungeon,” she chuckles as she shakes the man’s hand, noticing his ever-present bow tie. She can only think of a handful of times in her life she had seen him without one.

“I rather enjoy the peace and quiet I get down here in my dungeon,” Wally chuckles as he returns the hand shake. “That is until I got the call from you last night.”

“Not one I enjoyed making Wally, believe me,” Alex saying dropping the man’s hand. “Have you been able to find anything out yet?”

“I took her prints last night after I got her back here, sent them to your office this morning,” Wally offers as he heads further down the hallway. “Took some trace evidence off the body as well, sent them off to the lab but that’ll take some time. Unfortunately, there wasn’t much there to find. Whoever left her there did it with great care.”

“How do you mean?” Alex asks as they walk through a set of double doors leading to the exam area. Since most of the deaths that take place in the area are of natural cause their space is limited with only one exam table placed in the middle of the room. Cold storage was located at the back of the exam room with space for three bodies. It had never been filled.

“If I was a betting man, I’d bet she was bathed shortly after her death,” Wally answers stepping up to the table where the Jane Doe lies, covered with a simple white sheet.

“Whoever did this cleaned her up afterwards?” Alex asks in disbelief.

“Looks like it,” Wally says pulling the sheet back and exposing the young woman down to she shoulders. “Not a single drop of blood or dirt on her. The body is in nearly perfect condition.”

“With the one small detail of being dead,” Alex says softly as she leans down to take a closer look at the woman. There was still something about the girl that seemed familiar, though Alex still couldn’t figure out why.

Most people didn’t know how to take Wally, but Alex had the benefit of having known him nearly her entire life. Walter Norris has been the County Coroner for the last twenty years and had worked with Alex’s father, when he had been the Sheriff. His dark hair had gone completely grey years ago and he wore it longer then Alex’s, and she watches as it falls into his eyes whenever he looked down.

“There is that,” Wally agrees. “There are also the lacerations on the extremities. They start in the palms of each hand and in the arch of each foot, spiral up until they reach the trunk. They’re deep enough in some spots that the muscles are actually split”

“Is that the cause of death?” Alex asks, looking back up at the man standing across from her.

“No, my preliminary COD is strangulation,” Wally offers pointing to an area of the neck where several light bruises can be seen in the harsh light. “The bruising plus there are signs of petechial hemorrhaging in the eyes. There are several bruises of varying degree, I’d say she was choked several times prior to her actual death.”

“Do you think she was tortured?” Alex ask raising an eyebrow in question.

“I think so,” Wally replies sadly. “The lacerations, they were done premortem.”

“Jesus,” Alex mutters looking back down at the body. “How the hell does someone sit still for something like that?”

“I don’t know yet,” Wally sighs. “I sent some blood out for testing. There is one more thing,” Wally adds after a moment.

“Do I want to know?” Alex ask wearily.

“There is one injury that was postmortem,” Wally says lifting up the side of the sheet next to where Alex stands.

Alex considers herself someone that has seen a lot and is not often surprised by what she sees. People do terrible things to each other. This, however, was not something she had ever seen before. Carved into the woman’s side in delicate, smooth lines was one simple word. MINE

“Who the hell does something like this?” Alex asked rhetorically.

“Someone with a very disturbed mind,” Wally answers, lowering the sheet again. “It was covered by the gown she was wearing, which I removed and sent to the lab.”

“What kind of tool would leave marks like this?” Alex asks after a moment.

“The cuts are smooth and even, there are no hesitation marks and it appears that the cuts were made without lifting the instrument,” Wally remarks. “I’d say that the tool was a scalpel and it was used by someone that knew how to use it.”

“So, we need to be looking for a doctor?” Alex guesses.

“Not necessarily,” Wally hesitates then adds, “There are a number of careers that require the ability to use such a delicate tool. Doctors, nurses and surgeons of course but don’t forget artist, engineers and even field medics all know how to use scalpels. You should know this,” Wally teases, knowing full well that Alex had spent her time in the Army as a medic.

“Fair enough,” Alex chuckles lightly. “Is there anything else I should know?”

“Not right now. I’ll let you know when I hear from the lab but I’m sure you’ll get results before I do,” Wally shrugs. “I don’t have near the pull around here you do.”

“Sometimes being a Danvers pays off,” Alex smiles.

Wally chuckles at that, “There’s a copy of my report on the desk by the door. I knew you’d want a hard copy of it.”

“Thanks Wally, I’ll let you back to your work,” Alex nods. “Let me know if you find anything else,” Alex takes a few steps away to where the small desk is, manila folder sitting on the corner.  
“Will do Sheriff,” Wally says as he pulls the sheet back over the Jane Doe’s face.

Sliding the folder off the desk, Alex steps through the swinging double doors and back out into the hallway.

Sitting at her desk a few moments later, Alex lays out all of the pictures from the autopsy, effectively covering the entire thing, including the pictures from the crime scene. There were a lot of people that thought Wally was too old to still be doing his job. Despite the doubts, Alex found she was never disappointed by the man. The photos spread out before her were evidence of that. The man was thorough, photographing everything.

After a few moments of letting her eyes roam over the pictures, Alex reaches over and picks up the phone on the corner of the desk, the only thing not currently covered. Hitting the three-digit extension number for the front desk, she huffs out a breath.

“What can I do for you Sheriff?” the voice of Cathy, the dayshift receptionist, answers after two rings.

“I’m having a memory moment Cathy,” Alex answers, “Can you tell me who we have out on patrol right now?”

“No problem,” she says and Alex can hear the smile in her voice. Alex can hear the sound of keystrokes in the background and knows Cathy is looking up the roster of today’s officers. “Tim, Heather, Shawn, Darrell and Bill are on day shift today,” she answers after a few seconds. “Darrell and Shawn are patrolling up north, and Heather and Tim are in town. Bill just got back to the station a few minutes ago.”

“Alright,” Alex says, “Have Heather go out to the scene and take another look around, I want fresh eyes and daylight. Have her get another round of pictures too.”

“You’ve got it Sheriff, anything else?” Cathy asked.

“No, not right now,” Alex sighs, “Just do me a favor and keep everyone out of my office unless it’s related to the case from last night.”

“No problem Sheriff,” Cathy promised as the call ended.

Alex had barely replaced the receiver on its cradle before there was a knock on her door. With a short chuckle she starts to pull the pictures in to a stack and says, “Come in.”

“Morning Sheriff,” Bill says as he walks in to her office, leaving the door partway open behind him. Bill comes from an older school of law enforcement, having worked under Alex’s father when he had been Sheriff. Over the years, the weight of their work had taken its toll on Bill, his shoulders hunched just slightly, and he walked with a limp. His right knee had been injured years ago while wrestling with a drunk. It surprised Alex that his hair had not gone entirely grey, only showing signs at the temples and at the back of his neck.

“Morning Bill,” Alex says, piling the pictures in the center of her desk. “How’s Mary?” Alex asks with a smile. It was common for the younger members of the department to comment that Bill was so old school that even he and his wife’s names were. After all, it doesn’t get much more old school then William and Mary.

“She’s good. Looking forward to the holidays,” he answers with a smile. “I have the numbers for last month,” he adds, holding up a sheet of paper.

“How’s it look?” Alex asks sitting back in her chair. Over the past several years Bill had started helping out with more of the administration side of their job. It wasn’t that he had outgrown working the street but there was a large amount of work that needed tended to at the station. It hadn’t taken Alex long to find herself so buried in the paperwork aspect of being Sheriff that she rarely ever made it out of the station.

“Not bad, but September usually isn’t,” Bill says handing over the paper. “I’m sure it’ll be worse by the end of this month.”

“Only if the McCarty brothers are planning anything for Halloween again,” Alex smiles taking the report and looking it over. The arrest rate in Belle Rosa had never been incredibly high but they did deal with what could be considered usual. The same drunk and disorderly almost every week, the rare domestic and vandalism, which was where the McCarty brothers came in.

While they were in high school the two brothers had been known for pulling pranks and had even set off a cherry bomb on the boy’s bathroom. An incident that had been enough to close the school for the day. Now into their twenties and they hadn’t gotten much better, having set their parents barn on fire last New Year’s Eve after a failed attempt at making their own fireworks.

“It’s nothing short of a miracle their parents haven’t pressed charges yet,” Bill chuckles sitting in the chair opposite Alex.

“The price of love,” Alex mumbles while glancing over the short list of arrests. September was a calm month, school was fully back in swing and things had calmed down from the summer season. “Is it just me or has crime in this county always been predictable?”

Bill chuckles, “For the most part, yes,” he sobers slightly and adds, “With a few noticeable exceptions.”

Alex nods once, closing her eyes for a brief moment, in the process. One of those exceptions currently sat in front of her.

“I don’t think we’ve ever had anything like this before,” Alex sighs as she slides the top picture towards the older man.

“Lord in heaven,” Bill mutters, picking up the picture to study it further. “No one from here could have done something like this.”

Alex chuckles sadly and replies, “That wasn’t true the last time.”

Tearing his eyes away from the photo the older man meets Alex’s gaze.

“What happened to your father,” he starts but Alex quickly waves her hand in the air, cutting him off.

“Was a long time ago, I know,” she sighs. She glances at the far-left corner of her desk, the only spot that had not been covered moments ago, at the single framed picture.

A smiling family standing in front of a Sheriff’s Department cruiser. Alex had been twelve at the time, standing proudly next to her father, with his left arm draped around her. Alex’s mother stands to the man’s right, the couple holding hands fondly. Alex’s hand rest on the shoulder of her little brother, the boy is hugging the youngest Danvers close.

It had been taken only a few short days before their little world had been turned upside down forever. It was the last time Alex could remember them all being together and so happy. It was the last time they had been a real family. After that day, it had all fallen apart.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kara arrives home

“You’ve reached the voicemail of Sheriff Alex Danvers. I am unable to come to the phone right now. Please leave a message and I will get back to you as soon as possible. Thank you,” the sound of her sister’s voicemail message comes to an end and she waits for the beep.

“Alex, it’s Kara, your sister,” Kara says with a huff, “you were supposed to meet us at the airport. We’re waiting for our bags right now but if I haven’t heard from you by the time we get them, I guess we’ll rent a car and drive up. Let me know.” With that, Kara hits the end button and shoves her phone back into her inside jacket pocket.

With a shake of her head she shifts her attention to the two beauties standing next to the luggage carousel patiently waiting for their suitcases. The smaller of the two, now standing just short of three and a half feet, was a miniature version of the taller dark haired woman standing behind her, resting her hands lightly on the young girl’s shoulders.

The sight of her wife and daughter cause Kara’s lips to turn up in a smile. With a deep breath Kara closes the small gap between them and steps up behind her wife.

“I take it that your sister isn’t answering,” Lena says in that Irish accent that Kara has come to love so much.

“Straight to voicemail,” Kara answers laying her chin on Lena’s shoulder. “Which means her phone is either turned off or, more likely, she didn’t charge it and it’s dead.”

“I’m sure there’s a perfectly good reason,” Lena says softly as Kara snakes her arms around Lena’s waist. Lena has always been thin, not in an unhealthy way though, and the feeling of her under Kara’s arms has always cooled the other’s temper. “Yea,” Kara huffs then adds, “like she’s at the station.”

“Hmm,” Lena mummers as she leans back into Kara’s strong arms slightly, “Workaholics do run in the family,” she says with a grin. Unlike her sister, Kara had always been an athlete, both in high school and after, and she still liked to stay active.

“Momma,” the little girl looks up at both her mothers. Her little eye lids hanging low with drowsiness she asks, “Are we going to see Aunt Lexie soon?”

“Soon princess,” Kara says, letting go of Lena and moving around to squat in front of the girl. “We just have to wait for our suitcases but then we’re going to get a car and drive to Aunt Alex’s house.”

“Is it far?” the little girl asks as she tiredly rubs at her eyes.

“About an hour or so,” Kara answers, “but you can nap in the car before we get there.”

“I’m ok momma,” she says dropping her hand from her eyes. “I don’t need a nap,” she says yawning wide.

“I’m sure you don’t,” Kara smiles and opens her arms, knowing how exhausted the girl must be. After spending the better part of eight hours traveling, Kara was exhausted, and she was used to working strange hours.

Sure enough, the girl smiled and walked into her momma’s arms, Kara wrapping them tight around her and lifting the girl into the air. The girl quickly snuggled in to her side, resting her head on Kara’s shoulder and wrapping her legs around her waist.

“My two beautiful girls,” Lena says with a smile, leaning forward to smooth down some of the girl’s stray dark hairs and kissing her forehead before placing a small kiss on Kara’s cheek.

Before long, the girl’s breathing became even, and Kara could just make out the faint sound of little snores.

“I knew she wouldn’t last long,” Kara says in a whisper.

“It’s a lot of traveling for one so small,” Lena acknowledges with a smile, “but she’s done wonderful so far.”

“She has,” Kara agrees, “but this is why I didn’t want to come out. Between the travel and the time change, her sleep schedule is going to be shot.”

“Darling, I love you very much but we both know that Emma’s sleep schedule had little to do with why you didn’t want to come back here,” Lena says to her wife with a knowing smile.

Kara frowns but any response she might have had is lost to the sound of the luggage carousel coming to life. The sound causes Emma to jump in her arms, but Kara runs a soothing hand up her back and the child quickly settles back down.

“I’ll grab the bags,” Lena offers and steps up to wait for their bags to emerge.

As much as Kara hated to admit it, Lena was right, there were many reason Kara had not come back here since she left.

Growing up in a small town had never been a life that sat well with Kara, adding to it the legacy her father had left for them, Kara had been counting down the days until she made her escape. She’d graduated high school with only sixty-five others, meaning that her plan to escape had been anything but a well-kept secret.

Her senior year of high school she’d had everything planned out, knew exactly where her life was going to go and how she was getting there. Of course, a few things she hadn’t planned on had happened and everything changed. That was the year Alex had been injured while serving in the Middle East and had been in a coma for months after.

That had been one of the roughest three months of Kara’s life. The doctors at the hospitals in Washington, D. C. hadn’t been able to tell her and her mother if Alex was ever going to wake up again until finally one day, she had simply opened her eyes and asked where the hell she was.

Kara had been seventeen then and felt like her world had been turned upside down. The only bright spot at that time was the sudden, and rather mysterious, arrival of Lena in their middle of nowhere town at the beginning of the school year. Very little had been known about the quirky girl from Ireland that had come to live with her aunt, who also happened to be one of Kara’s teachers. Despite that, the two girls had struck up a fast friendship.

To this day Kara still credits her friendship with Lena as the only thing that got her through those long months many years ago. Alex had luckily returned to mostly full health after that but her career in the military had ended and she had returned home.

It was not an easy homecoming and Kara had worried about her sister to the point that she had decided to stay home and go to college at the local community college. It wasn’t what she had wanted, it was what she needed to do though and in the long run she couldn’t regret it.

Staying had meant her friendship with Lena had continued to grow, for Kara at least, to the point of frustration. Kara had known from the time she was about twelve that she was gay, and while it hadn’t sat well with her mother at first, it hadn’t been a big deal for much of her life.

That was until she had made the mistake that she had sworn she’d never make. As a teen she had spent hours online, surfing through sites and talking with others from around the world in similar situations as her. Growing up gay in a small town was not easy, not by a long shot, but it had helped to know she was not alone. Time and again she had read how others had fallen for their straight friends and how it always, always ended in heartbreak.

Kara had made it her mission to avoid falling for any of the very straight girls in her high school and hadn’t really dated much because of it. She hadn’t come close to breaking that rule until Lena came along. Their senior year had been filled with Lena showing up in town, Alex getting hurt and coming home, so there hadn’t been much time for thoughts of more than friendship. College was a different thing altogether though.

It wasn’t until the end of their first semester freshman year that Kara realized she was falling hard for her closest friend. She’d handled it as well as she could and swallowed her feelings for years, all the way until they were in their last semester before graduating. Kara had applied to and been accepted to the FBI Training Academy and planned on leaving that summer. She knew when she left that she’d probably never come back. Despite everything she still hated the place and longed to be as far away as possible.

To make matters worse, Lena had been dating the same guy since high school, an arrogant jock that still spent most of his time hanging out with his friends and drinking. He hadn’t gone to college and had ridiculed Lena for attending. It was a relationship Kara had never been able to understand until Lena had broke down one night and explained it was the only thing she could do to fit in. Small towns were seldom ever accepting of newcomers, and ones with pasts like Lena’s struggled. Dating him had made it just a bit easier, though Lena did admit she had never really been happy.

Then everything changed. Kara had gone out one night to try and drink her problems away before leaving town and Lena had showed up. She’s told Kara she had dumped her useless boyfriend and that she had something to tell Kara. Kara could never have guessed that Lena was there to tell her that she had broken things off with her boyfriend because she realized she had fallen in love with Kara.

They’d started making plans that night to move across the country together, to start a new life there. Kara had been on cloud nine that night when she had kissed Lena goodnight and dropped her off at home. She never could have known what else was going to happen that night.

“All set then,” Lena’s voice jars Kara from her memories of so long ago. Kara looks down and realizes Lena has collected both of their checked suitcases. Not only had she managed to wrestle both suitcases off the carousel, she had also stacked both suitcases, their carry-ons and Emma’s booster seat on to a luggage cart.

When Kara doesn’t reply, Lena cocks her head to the side slightly and looks concerned.

“Everything alright?” Lena asks, her eyes dropping to the small girl still in Kara’s arms for a heartbeat before returning to Kara’s face.

“Yea,” Kara says, her voice still low in hopes of not waking Emma, “I just spaced out there for a minute. Must be more tired then I thought.” She smiles to reassure her wife nothing is wrong and is rewarded with grin and a second peck on the cheek.

“So, I guess with no Alex we need to find the car rental counter,” Lena says placing her hands on the push bar of the cart. “Are you alright with carrying her?”

“Are you kidding?” Kara replies with a grin, “I have to get as much of this as I can with her. Before long she’s going to be too big for me to do this.”

Lena’s only response is an adoring smile and the trio set off to find the rental car counter.

“So, what were you thinking about earlier?” Lena asks about half an hour later as they drove down the dark highway leading to Bella Rosa.

“When?” Kara asks from the driver’s seat. Despite how worn out she already felt, she had insisted on driving, knowing that Lena was just as tired as she was. Luckily Kara had managed to get Emma settled in to her booster seat and buckled in while barely waking the child, who was still sound asleep in the back seat.

“At the airport, when I was loading up the bags. You had that look on your face,” Lena answers quietly.

“What look?” Kara asks with a grin and a quick look to her right.

Lena studies her for a moment before answering, “The look you get when you’re thinking about the past. When it’s bothering you again.”

“Not so much bothering me,” Kara admits, “it’s just being back here, where all the bad stuff happened, it’s not easy. So many bad things have happened here,” Kara glances in the rear-view mirror, checking on Emma and adds, “Our lives have been so much better since we left.”

“You’re not wrong my love,” Lena agrees softly, reaching across the small space between them to run her fingers through the short hair at the base of Kara’s neck, “but there have been some good things that happened here. We met here.”

Kara can’t help but smile at that, “Yes, we did. That being the one shining moment in my life.”

“You are such a sap,” Lena laughs and swats Kara’s arm.

“Hey, no violence on the driver,” Kara laughs back.

After a moment Lena asks the question that Kara had been trying not to think about since they landed.

“What do you think kept Alex from meeting us tonight?”

“If I had to guess, I’d say work,” Kara says in a low voice. “It’s always work with her.”

“Still hard to imagine something that would keep her. She’s been looking forward to us visiting for a long time now,” Lena reasons. “It’s the first time that Emma’s been here.”

“I know, and she swore that she’d be here,” Kara shrugs.

“So, if it is work then it must be something bad.”

“I guess we’ll find out soon enough. I’m going to make sure you and Emma are settled and, if Alex isn’t at her house when we get there, then I’m going to the station to find her,” Kara says.

“Just remember we’re here on vacation Kara,” Lena says a bit sternly. “It’s the first real one we’ve had in over a year.”

“I swear, I am not here to work. I’m only going to the station to drag Alex home,” Kara promises.

It took nearly another two hours to get to Bella Rosa and Alex’s old Victorian style two level house, which also happened to be the house they had grown up in, and get Emma settled in for the night. Alex had made up Kara’s old room for her and Lena, and Emma was sleeping in what had been Alex’s room growing up.

Kara had checked the master bedroom and found it empty, bed still made, and no one was anywhere in the downstairs. The only occupant of the house that was there was Alex’s now six-year-old Golden Retriever, who she had gotten shortly after buying the house from their mother. The pooch had happily met them at the front door when they’d arrived.

As Kara was entering her last year in college their mother had decided she wanted to downsize and had purchased a smaller place closer to the hospital, where she worked. Before their mother had even had the chance to think about putting the house on the market, Alex had bought it from her. Alex hadn’t changed much about the house, letting Kara live there until she finished school and moved away, though she had made the move to the master bedroom, the only room in the house with its own bathroom.

Scout, Alex’s dog, wasn’t much of a guard dog and never really had been. In fact, he hadn’t made a sound when they had come in. Kara always felt that Alex had gotten the dog simply for companionship, knowing deep down her little sister wouldn’t be staying for long.

Alex had brought Scout with her when she had visited them, usually twice a year. Alex had always opted to drive instead of fly, mainly due to wanting to bring Scout with her and not being willing to put the dog through the hassle of air travel. Kara knew that Alex had never been good at making friends in high school and that trend seemed to have continued, with Alex only having one or two real friends, so Kara knew having Scout meant a lot to her sister.

With it nearing eleven o’clock at night, Kara couldn’t imagine what could be keeping her sister this late.

“I’ll be back as soon as I find her,” Kara says, walking in to her old room where Lena was setting their things out.

“Try not to be too hard on her,” Lena advises softly.

“I know,” Kara gives Lena a quick kiss before heading back out in to the dark.

The drive to the Sheriff’s Station was short. One of the reasons their father had bought the house was because of its close location to not only the station, but the rest of the town. Even with the short drive, Kara drove past many places that brought back memories she had been happy to forget, or at the very least put behind her.

In just a few minutes she stopped in front of the station and put her rented SUV in to park. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door and headed into the station. It was dark at this time of the night, only three Deputies were on duty, if Kara was remembering the schedule correctly. She was sure she was, but none of them seemed to be at the station right now.

The only sign of life was a light from the back of the office area, where Kara knew the Sheriff’s Office was located. She had no doubt now that she had found her lost sister.

Without hesitation she pushed her way through the waist-high gate that separated the work area of the station from the public waiting area and reception and made her way to the back of the station.

During the second half of the drive from the airport, Kara had worked out what she planned to say to her sister when this moment came. When she stepped into the doorway of the office, however, she found herself at a loss for words. She had expected to see her sister sitting behind the desk reading over some report or another. Instead she found Alex sitting with her head laying folded on her arms resting on her desk, sound asleep. The desk she was sleeping on was nearly completely covered with what looked like crime scene pictures.

Kara took a small step in to the office, stepping on the notorious creaky board, and Alex sat bolt upright in her seat. A look of confusion crossed her face briefly before she focused on who was standing in front of her.

“Kara?” she asked, as though she didn’t believe what she saw.

“Hey sis,” Kara responds with a small grin. “You weren’t answering your phone.”

“Shit,” Alex comes to her feet, shuffling pictures around looking for something. “I don’t even know where I put the damn thing.”

“Alex, it’s fine,” Kara says, taking another step in to the small office. “We just rented a car and drove up.”

“I know, I just, wanted to be there to get you guys,” Alex says opening her top desk drawer and pulling her phone out. “Stupid thing. Where are Lena and Emma?”

“At your house, asleep,” Kara explains, “Well, at least Emma is. Lena was unpacking when I left. You gave me a key when you bought the house, so I figured I’d drop off the girls before I came to find you.”  
“Right,” Alex says, rubbing the back of her head as if trying to fully wake up. Alex had always kept her hair cut short, while Kara had let hers grow. While Alex’s hair was short enough that it stayed off her neck Kara’s had grown long enough that she wore it in a braid most days. “Give me a minute here and I’ll be ready to go.”

“What case are you working on?” Kara asks as she leans against the desk, peering at the pictures covering it. It was impossible to miss the fact that it was clearly a murder case, which was rare here to start with, but also the strange markings caught Kara’s eye.

“Dumped body out in the woods off of route ten,” Alex answered as she gathered up the pictures and put them into a folder.

“Who is she?”

“No idea,” Alex answers with a sigh, “she’s still a Jane Doe.”

“Jane Doe? I’m guessing that Wally already turned in her prints and took dental x-rays to figure out an ID?” Kara asked without thinking.

Alex lets the folder drop on to her desk before saying one simple word, “No.”

“No? Why not? You could never get an ID if,” Kara starts but gets cut off by her sister.

“No, no questions about the case,” Alex says firmly. “You’re here to be on vacation. If Lena thinks you’re coming out here to work a case, she’ll kick my ass.”

Kara can’t help but laugh at the absurdity of it all and sits down in the chair opposite Alex. Her sister gives her a confused look but sits back down in her chair.

“You want to know the last thing Lena told me before I left to come find you?” Kara asks, still chuckling.

Alex’s only response is a raised eyebrow and gesture for her sister to continue.

“She reminded me we’re here on vacation, not work,” Kara sighs with a smile, “because despite her not saying it, I’m sure she knows you’re working a case.”

“Are we that predictable?” Alex asks with a laugh as she leans forward and opens the bottom drawer of her desk, pulling out a bottle and two small glasses.

Alex could remember both her father and Sheriff Ed Sullivan, the man that had been Sheriff after her father, keeping a bottle of good scotch and two glasses in their desk. Because after somedays on this job there is nothing you can do but have a drink and move on, was something she had heard her father tell a fellow officer many years ago after a bad day. Never drink alone, your Deputies are your family and somedays they need it too. That was the advice Sheriff Sullivan had given her when she had taken over for him.

“Depends,” Kara answers watching her sister twist the top of the bottle of scotch, “Is that the same bottle dad used to keep in that drawer?”

“No,” Alex chuckles as she pours a small amount into each glass, “Ed took his last bottle with him so this one is only about three years old.” She slides a glass across the desk to her sister.

Kara sits forward and takes the glass, relaxing back in her chair she takes a small sip while looking around the office.

Like most things in this town, the office hasn’t changed much since the time Kara was a child. The center of the room contained the large desk Alex currently sat behind, the exact same desk their father had used. It had been old back then, with worn edges and drawers that tended to stick during the few summer weeks here that were humid enough to count as summer.

Behind Alex, in the one corner sat a filing cabinet, presumably holding whatever records Alex felt were important enough to keep close. It was actually a newer file cabinet, the old one having finally died of old age. To Kara’s left, against the far wall, was the old worn-down leather couch that their father had moved in to the space when he took over.

When it had been wrestled into the room, their father had said it was to help make people feel more comfortable in the office. It was supposedly meant to make the office a more welcoming place to be. In reality it had been used more by their father than anyone else.

“How many nights do you think dad spent sleeping on that old thing?” Kara asked absentmindedly as she glances at the couch.

Alex, her glass raised as she took a sip, follows Kara’s glance and sighs. Putting her glass down she answers, “I don’t know. I guess I don’t think about that much.”

“I don’t know how you don’t to be honest,” Kara mutters without thinking. “I just hope you don’t start learning from dad’s bad habits.”

Alex again lifts her eyebrow in question to which Kara replies, “Sleeping at your desk cannot be a good thing.”

“Oh, that,” Alex sighs, “it doesn’t happen as often as you think. I just-”

“Got caught up in the case,” Kara finishes her sentence for her. When Alex gives her a look she just shrugs and says, “I’ve possibly used that one once or twice myself.”

“How often do you sleep in your office?” Alex countered.

“Never,” Kara answers honestly. “When I first started at the Bureau, I thought maybe I’d finally understand why dad tended to stay at work so much, why it seemed like he rarely came home, but I’ve got to say, I don’t. I just don’t get it.”

Alex stays quiet, taking another sip from her glass, emptying it before setting it back down on her desk. The two sit without speaking for a long minute before Alex nods her head once, twisting the cap back onto the bottle and replacing it in her desk.

“I think it’s time to call it a night,” Alex says standing and stretching out her back.

“Good,” Kara stands as well, “much longer and Lena would be down here dragging us both back to the house and trust me, neither of us wants that.”

Alex laughs as she pulls her coat off the back of her chair and heads around her desk, “Do you think she’s still awake?”

“I can guarantee she still is,” Kara chuckles as she follows Alex out of the office. As they make their way past the handful of desks scattered around the small work space Kara says, “You know homicides aren’t exactly common around here and from the small glimpse I saw this isn’t a normal homicide.”

“I know where you’re going with this,” Alex replies, “and absolutely not. The last thing we need around here is a bunch of feds crawling around.” She hesitates then adds with a sideways smile, “No offense.”

Kara huffs out a laugh and smiles back, “I’m just saying it wouldn’t hurt to have a fresh set of eyes on things. Just think about it.”

“I’ll keep it in mind,” Alex says as she pushes open the door to the station and they step out in to the cold night air.

“I thought it got cold in D.C.,” Kara breathes as she wraps her coat tighter around her.

“A few years away and you forget how pleasant the weather is here,” Alex laughs.

“You have no room to talk there sis,” Kara shoves Alex’s shoulder. “You remember when you came home from your first deployment? I thought you were going to freeze to death that first winter.”

“God, that was terrible,” Alex says thinking back to that winter, feeling like both a lifetime ago and just yesterday in her mind. “Hey and in my defense, I had been in the desert, not Virginia, which gets pretty cold too by the way.”

“Yea, in December. It’s not even Halloween yet.”

“And the snows only just started,” Alex takes a deep breath and releases it in to a cloud in front of her. Without another word the two sisters part ways and head to their separate vehicles, Alex’s Sheriff Department SUV sitting against the curb in front of the station while Kara’s rental sat in the parking lot next to the station.

Within a few minutes they were back at Alex’s house, walking quietly through the front door, luckily though Scout didn’t seem to be interested in becoming a guard dog now and stayed quiet.

“He’s a terrible guard dog but he does usually come meet me at least,” Alex complains when Scout is a no show. Seconds later and they found out why they had not been met by the wet nose welcome committee.

What had been a dining room in their youth had been converted in to a small office. A more practical use of the space, Alex had explained. She’d moved the table into the kitchen and replaced it with an old desk that took up nearly the entire front corner of the room. The back wall had been turned into bookshelves and were covered with Alex’s collection, ranging anywhere from college textbooks, to medical journals and of course the classics.

Sitting in the lounge chair in front of the bookshelves was Lena, book open on her lap. She had clearly been reading when she’d heard them come in. Scout was curled up next to her as she gently petted his head. The dog appeared to be on cloud nine and loving the attention.

“Pushover,” Alex chuckles as she shakes her head at the scene.

“Aw, he’s a good boy. Aren’t you?” Lena asks as Scout looks up at her and she rubs under his chin. His tongue slipping out the side of his mouth as if to show he agrees.

Lena laughs but carefully slides off the lounge and stands, arms open to greet her sister-in-law.

“I was starting to get worried about you two,” Lena says as they embrace.

“Sorry about that,” Alex apologizes returning the hug. “Fell asleep at my desk.”

“I’m not surprised,” Lena chuckles as they break apart. “Unfortunately, your niece is sleeping so you two will have to wait until tomorrow to get into trouble together.”

Alex can’t help but chuckle at that. The biggest upside to having a niece is getting to spend time with them. Now that Emma was getting older Alex had begun finding new adventures for them to go on together.

“I am sorry I didn’t meet you guys at the airport,” Alex says as Lena walks to Kara and gives her a kiss on the cheek.

“It’s alright,” Lena shrugs.

“We were probably going to end up renting a car anyway to get around,” Kara says as she takes Lena’s hand. “Just got one sooner.”

“I seriously owe you guys for ditching you like that,” Alex says, still feeling guilty. “How about I take you guys to Red’s tomorrow, drinks on me.”

“That’d be great,” Kara starts, “Only I don’t think taking our four-year-old to the bar is the best idea.”

“True,” Alex concedes with a nod, “but, I’m sure mom wouldn’t mind watching Emma for a bit.”

“Here for less than a day and we’re already hitting mom up to babysit,” Kara says.

“Oh please, you know she’ll be itching to spend time with her granddaughter,” Lena chuckles. “We’re lucky she didn’t meet us at the airport.” Lena looks at Alex next, “But you better be ready because tomorrow Emma is going to want her aunt Lexie.”

“Really?” Alex laughs. When Emma had first started talking, she had gone through a time where she struggled with the letter A. The then two-and-a-half-year-old had simply dropped the A from her name and dubbed her Aunt Lexie and it had stuck.

“Oh yes, you’re still her aunt Lexie and you probably always will be,” Kara chuckles.

“And she’s been looking forward to this trip since we told her,” Lena adds as she leans into Kara’s side, resting her head on her wife’s shoulder.

“In that case, I’d better get some sleep,” Alex smiles, already looking forward to the next day. “I’ll see you guys in the morning.”

“Good night Alex,” Kara says as her sister passes them and heads up the stairs.

They stand there together until they here the sound of Alex’s bedroom door closing.

“Is she alright?” Lena ask at last.

“Honestly, I don’t know,” Kara answers pressing a kiss to Lena’s forehead. “She’s working a murder case, a weird one.”

“Please tell me you haven’t gotten yourself involved,” Lena starts as she steps away from Kara and retrieves the book she had been reading from the lounge, Scout lifting his head as she does. She pats the dog kindly before turning back to her wife.

“I haven’t,” Kara says honestly. “but I am worried about Alex. If she’s going this on her own it could be rough, and she might not catch whoever did it.”

“You know your team can’t get involved unless you’re invited,” Lena warns, “and you’re supposed to be on vacation.”

“I know that,” Kara sighs, “and I don’t intend on pushing the issue. Alex knows what she’s doing and hopefully she knows when to asks for help.”

Lena chuckles and Kara knows she’s thinking the same thing Kara is. The sister aren’t exactly known for their willingness to work with others or ask for help.

Kara takes a few steps forward and takes the book from Lena’s hand, sitting it on the desk beside them, then takes both of Lena’s hands in her own.

“I am here, with my family, for a vacation. To relax and enjoy time together doing nothing but being goofy and having fun,” Kara promises her wife. “I love you.”

Lena hums and leans into Kara, kissing her softly. “I love you too,” Lena whispers back.

“Let’s get some sleep my love,” Kara says and pulls lightly on Lena’s hands, guiding them both upstairs to her old room, for what remained of the night.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is mostly fluff and backstory for some of our main characters

Early the next morning, before the sun had even come up, Kara is pulled from sleep by the sound of the bedroom door opening. It opens slowly and only a crack, just enough for someone to peek inside. Kara could feel Lena still asleep beside her, her breathing even as she slept deeply.

“Morning Princess,” Kara mumbles sleepily. Their daughter has been an early riser her entire life, and even on vacation she was usually up before six in the morning. “Come on in.”

The girl pushed the door the rest of the way open and quietly entered the room, her dark hair looking wild after a night of sleeping. Lena has never been an early bird and Kara had long ago taken over the morning routine with Emma. Without a sound, Emma walks up to Kara’s side of the bed, Kara lifts the blankets and Emma crawls in next to her.

“Morning momma,” the little girl says as she settles in facing Kara. “Is it morning yet?” she asks quietly.

Kara can’t help but chuckle as she looks to the small bedside table and clock next to her side of the bed. Big red numbers on the clock read 5:56.

“Technically yes,” Kara answers in a whisper, feeling Lena shift behind her, “but I think mommy needs a little bit more sleep.”

“Where’s aunt Lexie?” she asks next, sounding just a bit disappointed.

“Probably in her room,” Kara answers as a thought forms in her still sleepy mind. “Why don’t you go find her? Her room is at the end of the hallway.”

“Is she awake?”

“You can wake her up,” Kara offers, “She said last night she wants to make breakfast with you.”

“She did?” Emma ask, sounding excited now.

“Absolutely,” Kara says and watches the smile on the girl’s face grow. The little one squirms her way off the bed and races back to the bedroom door. Once she reaches the hallway Kara hears her yell, “Aunt Lexie! Aunt Lexie! It’s morning, we can make breakfast now!”

Kara can’t help but chuckle listening to her daughter as she reaches Alex’s bedroom and pushes open the door, still calling for her aunt.

“That was cruel,” Lena says from behind her and rolls over to face Kara, who has been laying on her back.

“No, that was funny,” Kara counters with a chuckle, “and payback.”

“Hmm,” is Lena’s only response as she lays her head on Kara’s shoulder, her arm draped across Kara’s waist, and in no time at all Kara hears her breathing even out again. Knowing her daughter was in the capable hands of her sister and listening to Lena’s breathing, Kara soon falls back into a comfortable sleep.

Down the hall was a completely different story. Alex didn’t have the slightest clue where the idea of making breakfast had come from but since she currently had a very excited four-year-old jumping up and down on her bed, she guessed it really didn’t matter.

“Alright munchkin, alright,” Alex says as the girl continues to jump on the bed excitedly. “What do you want for breakfast?” Alex asks as she catches the girl on one of her bounces.

“Pancakes!” Emma squeals as Alex starts tickling her sides.

“Pancakes?” Alex asks as she does a quick inventory of her kitchen in her head. “I think we can do that. Are your mommies awake yet?”

“Momma is but mommy is still sleeping,” Emma answers between laughs. “Momma says you want to make breakfast.”

“Did she?” Alex asks in a light tone, “Wasn’t that nice of her.” _Very funny Kara_, Alex thinks to herself. “Well, how about we head downstairs and start on breakfast then.”

“Yay!!” the girl says as she jumps out of the bed and heads for the door. “Pancakes!!”

Alex chuckles as she follows Emma, grabbing the robe slung across the chair next to her bed and pulling it on. Alex watches as Emma runs down the hallway, making sure to stay quiet as she passes her mother’s room, then squeals as she heads down the stairs. Emma had always been such a considerate child, learning well from her mothers.

As she passes Kara’s room, she notices the door is still open and peaks inside to see her sister and her wife are once again fast asleep. The thought of waking them comes and goes from her mind quickly and she quietly pulls the door shut.

As Alex approaches the top of the stairs, she hears a small thud from the bottom of the steps. She hurries down the stairs and is relieved to see that Emma is sitting on the floor at the bottom of the stairs, Scout all but in her lap, covering her face with kisses.

“Hi Scout,” Emma giggles as the dog continues his onslaught. “I think he missed me.”

“I’m sure he has,” Alex says as she reaches the bottom of the stairs. Scout looks up at her and she pats his head, “Alright you old brat, let the kid up.” Alex bends down and picks Emma up, settling the girl on her hip and heading into the kitchen. “So, what do we need to make pancakes?” Alex asks as she sets Emma on the counter and looks around the kitchen.

Nearly two hours later Kara walks in to the kitchen to find the counters, most of the floor and Scout covered with white powder, flour if she had to guess. Alex and Emma sit at the dining table located next to the kitchen windows. The little girl’s face and clothes however, were covered in the same floury substance as the rest of the room.

“I see you two have been busy this morning,” Kara says, doing her best to hold back the laugh.

“Aunt Lexie and I made pancakes!” Emma exclaims and holds up her fork, a piece of pancake hanging off the end. Kara can’t hold back a chuckle when she looks at Alex, flour on her forehead and in spots in her hair.

“Yes, you did,” Kara says to the girl. “Are they good?”

“They’re yummy!” Emma answers as she puts a bite into her mouth.

Kara looks at Alex, who discreetly shakes her head, causing Kara to chuckle again.

“Momma, do you want pancakes?” Emma asks around her mouthful of food.

“I am going to have coffee and wait for your mommy,” Kara avoids the mess as best as possible and makes her way to the coffee pot. Not surprisingly there’s a mostly full, fresh pot. No doubt Alex’s needed the coffee being up this early with an excited four-year-old.

As Kara pours herself a cup, Lena walks into the kitchen, still in her pajamas with the addition of her sheer robe which was secured around her waist with a matching belt.

“Oh my,” Lena says as she takes in the scene before her, “what happened in here?”

“Pancakes,” Emma repeats as she stuffs another bite in to her mouth.

“We had a small incident with the mixer,” Alex explains lifting her coffee mug to take a sip.

“Small?” Kara chuckles from behind her cup.

“Well, it started out small but then we had a flour fight,” Alex grins running her fingers through her hair and causing a small snow storm of flour to fall from her head. “Got a little messy.”

“I’m sorry we missed that,” Lena says with a smile. “Once you finish eating little one, you’re going to need a bath.”

“Can aunt Lexie give me a bath?” Emma ask and looks at Alex with big puppy dog eyes.

“I don’t see why not,” Lena agrees joining Kara by the coffee maker.

“As long as aunt Alex doesn’t flood the bathroom,” Kara says just barely keeping herself from laughing.

“Very cute,” Alex sasses back at her sister. Before she has a chance to say anything else her phone rings. She quickly digs it out of the pocket of her pajama pants and checks the caller ID. Wally Norris reads in bold letters across the screen.

“Sorry, I’ve got to take this,” Alex says as she stands up from the table and walks in to the other room.

“I’m sure she won’t be long,” Kara assures Lena when their eyes meet.

“She better not be,” Lena says and pokes Kara’s side, “or you’ll be the one giving miss flour princess over there her bath.”

“Flour princess,” Kara says in a playful tone as she approaches the table and crouches down. “Are you the new flour princess?”

“Can I be a knight today?” Emma asks after swallowing her last bite of breakfast.

“You can be whatever you want to be darling,” Lena answers, sitting across the table from their daughter.

“Flour knight!” Emma exclaims as she brandishes her fork around like a sword.

“Alright my little knight,” Kara says with a chuckle, “just try not to make a mess.”

“A bigger mess you mean,” Lena adds with a smile.

“I doubt we can make it much worse,” Kara says and picks up Alex’s discarded fork from the table. “Flour knight,” Kara starts in a deep voice she often uses when telling Emma bedtime stories, “I’ve come from your Queen.” Kara holds up her fork and clinks it against Emma’s.

Emma gasps and jumps down from her chair, placing herself between Kara and Lena, “I’ll protect you Queen Flour,” the little girl tells Lena as she continues to hit Kara’s fork with her own.

“Brave knight, do be careful,” Lena says mimicking Kara in using story time voices.

“Don’t worry,” Emma offers, her tongue sticking out the corner of her mouth, “I’ve defeated this monster before.”

Neither Lena or Kara can keep themselves from laughing as their daughter battles on, Kara laughing a little too much and dropping her fork. She quickly holds her hands up in surrender.

“I am defeated, again,” Kara says and hangs her head.

“Yay! We won,” Emma cheers turning around and throwing her arms around Lena, covering her lap with flour.

“Well done my brave little knight,” Lena smiles, patting her daughter’s back gently. “Now it’s time for your celebratory bath.”

“Nooo,” Emma cries dramatically. “Not a bath.”

“Yes, bath time,” Kara says scooping her daughter up in her arms. “You’ll have to be careful though. When I was a kid there was a sea monster that lived in that bathtub.”

Emma gasps again, covering her mouth with her hands, “But I’m a knight, I’m not scared of monsters.”

“That’s my girl,” Kara laughs. Throwing a wink over her shoulder at Lena, she heads upstairs with a very chatty Emma.

Lena takes a moment to enjoy the quiet and takes another sip from her coffee. Setting her mug on the table she takes a deep sigh, more content with her life than she had ever thought to be possible.

“Sounds like I missed all the fun,” Alex says walking back in to the kitchen, shoving her phone back in to her pocket.

“Ah, well Emma is very much into the fantasy life right now,” Lena offers. “Princess, Knights and Dragons are pretty much a daily thing. She loves it.”

“I remember when Kara went through a stage like that,” Alex chuckles as she sits across from her sister-in-law.

“Really? When was that?” Lena ask curiously.

Alex thinks for a moment before answering, “Had to be right around Emma’s age, maybe a bit older. When she was six, she insisted she was Robin Hood for months,” Alex adds with a chuckle.

“That’s adorable,” Lena smiles.

“You can say that,” Alex chuckles, “You aren’t the one she made play Little John.”

They share a laugh at the memory then Lena says quietly, “You know she still practices with her bow when she has a chance. She’s good.”

“She’s always had this uncannily good aim,” Alex shakes her head. “No matter how good I am, she’s always been better.”

Lena huffs a laugh, “Never play darts with her.”

“Learned that a long time ago,” Alex nods, then takes a sip of her now cold coffee and winces. “Did Kara take Emma upstairs for her bath already?”

“Yea, we weren’t sure how long you were going to be,” Lena explains with a shrug.

“Sorry about that,” Alex winces again, “it was Wally with the toxic results from the Jane Doe.”

“Not good I take it?” Lena asks.

“I thought you didn’t want Kara working on this,” Alex says with a lopsided grin, the same damn grin Kara has.

“I don’t,” Lena says with a smile of her own, “but sometimes it helps to talk through what you’re working on. I’m a good sounding board and, unlike my wife, I don’t get tunnel vision when work is involved.”

“I take it Kara’s told you about the case.”

“A bit, only what she saw on your desk last night,” Lena confirms.

“Fair enough,” Alex chuckles. After a moment she sighs and says, “They find high levels of Hemlock in our Jane Doe’s blood.”

“Hemlock? That’s unusual,” Lena says softly.

“Unless you’re ancient Greek and then you use it to kill someone like Socrates,” Alex allows.

“Socrates killed himself rather than flee his country,” Lena corrects without thinking. “I don’t imagine there are many uses for it nowadays.”

Alex smiles at her sister-in-law, “Mostly it’s just used in making medications, but it’s always mixed with something else. This was a pure concentration of it.”

“So, whoever your suspect is, they didn’t want the victim moving,” Lena reasons with a thoughtful look on her face. “Kara mentioned some pretty disturbing pictures of what the body looked like.”

“Very precise markings on the extremities,” Alex confirms, and she pulls her phone out of her pocket, calling up pictures of the body. “Wally also just told me that the marks were all made before the victim died.”

“The hemlock was given over time then,” Lena says and her voice changes just a little, taking on a darker tone than before, as she exams the picture. “If he delivered it over a prolonged amount of time, he’d be able to keep the victim paralyzed while he worked. He’d have to. These lines are smooth and there’s no way anyone would hold still for something like this.”

“That’s terrifying,” Alex says in a low voice as Lena hands her back her phone. It was often easy to forget that her sister-in-law had come from a dark place when she moved to their little backwoods town so many years ago. “You ok?”

Lena blinks slowly and answers with a small smile,” I’m fine.” When Alex gives her a doubtful look she adds, “It was along time ago and I’ve got myself a whole new life. I’m good now.”

“Good,” Alex says simply. “I don’t want to open up old wounds.”

“Hardly,” Lena assures her. “Besides, something good should come from all that ugliness, so if I can help than I’m more than happy to.”

“Thanks, but I don’t know what else to do with this case,” Alex sighs. “There’s no real evidence that we could find, on the scene or on the body, and we still don’t have a name for the Jane Doe. Unless some evidence shows up, I don’t know what else to do.”

“Have you looked outside the county?” Lena suggest earning her a questioning look from Alex. “Considering the lack of evidence and how precise the cuts are, I’d wager this wasn’t his first time. No one is that good on the first go.”

“You think it’s a serial?” Alex asks surprised.

“I wouldn’t rule it out,” Lena says with a shrug, then adds, “I’ll help you get the kitchen cleaned up.”

“Thanks,” Alex says with a smile, “I had no idea how messy making pancakes could be.”

“You’ll learn quickly that pretty much everything with a four-year-old is messy,” Lena grins getting up and putting her empty coffee cup in the sink.

“You know she reminded me this morning that she’s going to be five soon, a big girl,” Alex chuckles as she grabs a rag off the counter and starts wiping it down.

“She’s excited to start school,” Lena explains with a smile as she grabs a broom from the corner of the room, “it’s all she’s been talking about since we told her she can go once she’s five.”

Alex laughs, “At least she’s excited to go. Kara hated it, even when she was five.”

“I remember what she was like senior year,” Lena says lightly, “I don’t think I’d ever met anyone that hated high school as much and still got such amazing grades.”

“She may have hated school, but she was smart enough to know she needed the grades,” Alex remembers fondly. She’d been deployed for her second tour of Afghanistan when Kara had started her senior year of high school so communication hadn’t always been easy, but she did her best to keep in touch while she was away.

“You know I don’t think I ever thanked you for everything you did for her back then,” Alex says as she grabs the trash can and brushes a pile of flour off the counter and in to it.

“She was my friend,” Lena says simply, “besides, she’d already done a lot for me by then. Did she ever tell you about the night we nearly got arrested?”

“No,” Alex laughs, “When the hell was this?”

“Less then a month before you got hurt,” Lena answers, smiling at the memory. “Looking back, I think that’s the moment I fell for her.”

“You fell in love in the backseat of a cop car?” Alex asks with a laugh.

“I think I did actually,” Lena laughs as well and the two laugh together until they are interrupted by the sound a little feet coming down the stairs.

“My wife and my sister laughing together, now that’s scary,” Kara says as her and a freshly cleaned Emma return to the kitchen.

“Reminiscing about high school,” Alex explains and when Kara makes a disgusted face, she and Lena both laugh again. “See, she still hates school.”

“For someone who hates school, she sure has a lot of degrees,” Lena says with pride.

“Always something to learn,” Kara mumbles then adds, “Alex, why don’t you go get ready and we’ll finish cleaning up the kitchen. Someone is looking forward to spending more time with you.”

Alex looks down at the small girl standing in front of her sister, a wide toothy grin on her face and can’t help but chuckle again.

“Sounds good, I’ll probably need to go to the station for a bit this evening,” Alex sighs, “but this afternoon is all you munchkin.”

“How about you read in the living room while mommy and I clean up?” Kara says to Emma who happily pulls one of her books from her bag by the stairs and heads in to the living room.

“I’ll only be a few minutes,” Alex says then disappears back up the stairs.

“She alright?” Kara ask after she hears Alex’s bedroom door close upstairs.

Lena hesitates a moment then says, “I think the case is getting the better of her. We talked a little and I told her I think she might have a serial on her hands.”

“Well damn,” Kara sighs. “I was afraid of something like that.”

“I know,” Lena says softly. After looking at the pictures of the victim she had started to wonder if it wouldn’t be better for Kara to help her sister. “For right now, let’s let her figure that part out for herself.” After a moment she says, “Once you’re done wiping that counter, can you grab me the mop?”

“Right,” Kara says as she finishes with the counter.

“Darling,” Lena says coming to Kara’s side and taking her hand. “Try not to overthink it right now. There’s nothing we can do unless she asks for help.”

“I know,” Kara says with a sigh, “I also know that she’s not likely to do that. If it’s a serial, she’s going to want to handle it herself.”

“Then we’ll be here to remind her she doesn’t have to,” Lena comforts and places a small kiss on Kara’s temple. “Now, let’s finish getting this mess cleaned up.”

By the time they had finished deflouring the kitchen Alex was back downstairs, dressed and ready for the day. She’d replaced her pajamas with a pair of lightly worn jeans and a button-down flannel shirt.

“You look ready to go,” Lena says to Alex.

“Yep, all set,” Alex answers with a grin. “I figured I’d take Emma sledding for a bit over by the fire house until lunch then take her to The Griddle to eat. I also talked to mom while I was getting ready and she’s planning on picking Emma up after lunch and keep her until tonight.”

“Well,” Lena says looking to Kara, “looks like the only thing we have to do now is figure out what we’re going to do today.”

“I’m sure we can think of something,” Kara answers her with a lopsided grin that never seems to fail to make Lena swoon.

“Ew,” Alex says, “anyway, I’m kidnapping my niece. See you guys later.”

“Is it bad that I’m worried?” Kara ask as she watches Alex get Emma in to her coat.

“You know Alex won’t let anything happen to her,” Lena says reassuringly.

“That’s not what I’m worried about,” Kara says with a sigh as Alex and Emma head out the front door together. “I’m more worried about what kind of trouble they’re going to get into together.”

Lena laughs, “Hopefully they got their destructive phase out of the way with breakfast.” She takes a few steps towards the steps before turning around and adding, “Now that we have the house to ourselves, I’m going to shower.”

“We don’t have to have the house to ourselves for you to shower,” Kara say quizzically.

“Hmm,” Lena hums as she reaches the bottom of the stairs, “I don’t, unless I don’t plan on showering alone.”

It takes Kara’s brain a few seconds to process what her wife had just said, and in that time, Lena had made it several steps up the stairs.

“You are such a tease,” Kara calls after her as she quickly moves to follow her wife, who is now laughing as she walks into their shared bathroom.

**

Several hours later, Kara and Lena walked into the only bar in town, Red’s, which had been owned by the same old man for most of Kara’s life. It was your typical small-town bar complete with neon lights that were used to light most of the bar area. Most of the place was taken up by the actual bar. Old and worn out, the wood had held up pretty well for the amount of use it had seen.

There was a small, mostly unused area, in the back that held the dart board and what passed for a tiny dance floor. There were a few tables scattered in that area as well, also mostly unused. With just a quick glance around it was clear to Kara that the place hadn’t changed at all since the last time she’d been here.

“Why did we agree to meet Alex here?” Kara asks through gritted teeth. It had not escaped her that when they had entered the bar, most of the patrons there had looked at them, a few even whispering to each other.

“Because it’s the only bar in town,” Lena answers as she takes her coat off, either unaware of the looks or not caring. If Kara had to guess she’d pick the latter. Lena never seemed to care about those kinds of things.

“Everyone in here knows who we are and,” Kara hesitates for a moment, “what happened last time we were here.”

“Oh darling,” Lena says quietly and kisses her cheek lightly, “who cares what they think. Let’s find seats.”

“It really doesn’t bother you?” Kara all but growls as they work their way around the bar and find seats at the far end of the bar, facing the door.

“The looks? Of course not,” Lena says as she drapes her coat over the back of her chair.

“Not that,” Kara shrugs out of her coat, “being here, after…”

Before Lena has a chance to say anything the bartender walks up.

“Hey, strangers,” the bartender says with a big smile. “Long time.”

“Hey Lucy,” Kara response with a small smile. “How have you been?”

“You know how it is around here,” Lucy replies with a shrug.

“Yea, been gone five years and not a single thing has changed,” Kara comments dryly.

“What can I get you guys to drink?” Lucy ask setting down cardboard coasters in front of them.

“Gin and tonic,” Lena answers with a smile, “and a whiskey for the grumpy gus.”

“You got it,” Lucy says, turning to get their drinks.

“I’m not grumpy,” Kara mumbles and Lena leans against her, resting her chin on Kara’s shoulder, her nose just barely touching her cheek.

“I know love,” Lena says softly, “but please try to enjoy yourself a little.”

“I love you, you know,” is Kara’s response.

“I know,” Lena kisses her cheek again then sits up as Lucy sets their drinks down in front of them. The front door of the bar opens and closes again, and Kara looks up, expecting to see her sister walk in. Instead walks in a shorter woman, with black hair pulled back into a pony tail, wearing a black leather jacket and faded jeans. The newcomer hadn’t bothered to wear a coat, despite the temperature outside, and she looks around the bar.

When her eyes landed on Kara and Lena, she tilted her head curiously just enough to be noticed and began to make her way around the bar.

“Lucy, who’s that?” Kara asked, and Lucy followed her eyes to the newcomer.

“Ah, that’s Maggie, she’s a medic,” Lucy explains with an almost shy smile, “she moved to town about four years ago. Watch out for yourself, she’s a flirt,” she adds with a chuckle as Maggie steps up beside them.

“You must be the FBI Agent,” Maggie says in way of introduction.

“Is it that obvious?” Kara asks lifting her glass to take a sip.

“Not really,” Maggie admits as she pulls out the chair next to Kara and sits down, “but you two are the only ones in here I didn’t recognize, and I know Alex’s FBI sister is in town.”

“She does have a point,” Lena smiles from Kara’s other side. Reaching across Kara she offers Maggie her hand, “I’m Lena, Kara’s wife.”

“Pleasure,” Maggie shakes her hand, “that makes you Kara then. I’m Maggie.”

“Nice to meet you,” Kara offers her hand and Maggie shakes it. “So, where are you from?”

“Blue Springs, Nebraska,” Maggie nods.

“Not too far from home then,” Kara says with a grin. “Get back to visit often?”

“No,” Maggie admits, “Haven’t been back since I left. Joined the Navy and traveled a lot,” Maggie adds as Lucy walks up to take her order.

“What can I get for you Maggie?” she asks, tossing another coaster on the bar.

“Hey there beautiful,” Maggie says turning her attention to the bartender. “Can I get two beers.”

“Two?” Lucy asks.

“Yea, I’ve got to drink some courage before I can make conversation with this really cute bartender I know,” Maggie says with a wink and smile before adding, “Sheriff is on her way over.”

“You’ve got it,” Lucy says and even in the dark room Kara notices a slight blush on the other woman’s cheeks.

“So, you’re meeting Alex here?” Lena ask after Lucy had stepped away.

“She called me a little bit ago and asked me to meet her here,” Maggie explains looking back to the pair beside her. “Said she needed to talk about something. I take it you’re meeting her too.”

“That was the plan,” Kara answers, “She owes us a few drinks after forgetting to pick us up at the airport.”

“Somebody needs to pry her out of that Sheriff’s Station more often,” Maggie says almost to herself as Lucy sets the drinks down in front of her, “Thanks Lucy.”

“I’ll drink to that,” Kara says raising her glass, to which Maggie raises her own.

“You two cheering to anything concerns me,” Alex says from behind them causing both of them to nearly choke on their drinks. “And that was payback for the other night,” Alex laughs at Maggie.

“Ass,” Maggie says but moves over a seat so that Alex can sit between her and Kara.

“That for me?” Alex asks as she takes her seat and gestures to the beer sitting on the counter.

“It is,” Maggie answers, “even if you did sneak in the back door.”

“It’s closer to the station,” Alex shrugs, “Hey sis. How was your child free day?”

“Uneventful for a change,” Kara smirks as she feels Lena slip her hand into hers. “How’d Emma enjoy her afternoon with Aunt Lexie?”

“Aunt Lexie?” Maggie repeats with a snort of laughter.

“Shut up,” Alex growls before addressing her sister. “We had fun, sledding and playing in the snow. You know, your daughter is vicious at snow ball fights. I think I may have a black eye in the morning.”

“Got your ass kicked by a four-year-old, huh?” Kara snickers.

“Not my fault she inherited your aim,” Alex chuckles.

Kara can’t help but smile at that, knowing full well there was no way for Emma to inherit anything from her, since there was no biological connection between her and her daughter.

“Oh, right,” Maggie says as if realizing something, “you’re the one with the supposedly perfect aim, right?”

“Supposedly?” Kara looks past her sister to where Maggie sits, leaning forward against the bar.

“I’m just going off of what I’ve heard, never seen it for myself,” Maggie smiles.

“Oh lord,” Lena mumbles knowing her wife well enough to know she’ll accept the unspoken challenge.

“Hey, Lucy,” Kara says catching the bartender’s attention. “Can I get another glass of whiskey and the darts please.”

“You got it,” Lucy says, reaching under the bar and producing the small bin containing the darts.

“You up for a game, squid?” Kara asks, using the traditional nickname for Navy personnel.

“Absolutely,” Maggie says as she finishes her beer in a matter of a few seconds.

“Another beer?” Lucy ask her as she sets Kara’s drink on the bar.

“Yup, might need it,” Maggie says with a grin.

Kara picks up her glass and heads over to the where the dart board sits, in the corner of the bar, Maggie right behind her.

“Well, I guess it’s a good thing to see your friend and sister getting along,” Lena says with a chuckle, sliding over to take Kara’s seat next to Alex.

“I suppose,” Alex sighs, “I was actually hoping to talk to Maggie about something.”

“I’m sure the game won’t take long,” Lena assures her. “Everything alright?”

Alex takes a long drink from her beer before she sets it down and sighs, “Wally found something else on the Jane Doe this afternoon.”

“And you needed Maggie?” Lena ask a bit confused.

“Um,” Alex hesitates before saying, “Maggie and I were in the same unit during my last tour in Afghanistan. We, uh, we helped investigate cases that were, well, a little unusual.”

Lena pauses a moment to take that in then says, “You were on a team like Kara’s been trying to get on?”

“Sort of,” Alex sighs, “Criminal investigation is handled a little different over there. Anyway, one of the last cases we worked together before my injury…. had similarities to the Jane Doe we have now.”

“You think they could be related?” Lena asks.

“Maybe. I wanted her eyes on something. Fresh eyes, to make sure I’m not making connections that aren’t there.”

“You know, if you need fresh eyes, I’m sure your sister would be willing to give it a look,” Lena offers and gets a suspicious look from her sister-in-law. “I know, I don’t want her working while we’re here, but she’s got eyes for this kind of work, and I think you could use the help.”

“I’ll think about it,” Alex says after a moment.

“Oh, come on!” they hear Maggie exclaim from the area of the dart board.

“From the sounds of it, the game isn’t going your friend’s way,” Lena smiles. “Excuse me,” she says and slides off the stool, heading over to where Kara is lining up her next shot.

“Mind if I play the winner?” Lena asks as she walks up to the table Maggie is leaning against with her drink.

“She doesn’t miss a damn shot,” Maggie says in reply.

“Not really no,” Lena answers with a shake of her head and a grin.

“Told ya,” Kara says with a shrug as she picks her glass up off the table.

“Getting her drunk won’t help either,” Lena warns, “I think she actually gets better.”

“That’s less than encouraging,” Maggie says as she drains the last of her drink. “They must have loved you on the high school sports teams.”

While Kara just rolled her eyes Lena says, “Actually miss anti-social here refused to play on any team, except the archery team.”

“Archery?” Maggie says nodding her head in approval then with a grin adds, “So, you’re more like a Kara Hood, huh?”

“That’s cute,” Kara says in a huff, “but you lost so next round is on you.”

“Right,” Maggie says as she collects both their glasses and walks back over to the bar.

“You know it’s not fair making a bet when you know you’re going to win,” Lena says with a smile.

“She wanted the bet,” Kara says with a shrug, “I only agreed to it.”

“Well, it was perfect timing,” Lena says taking a step closer to Kara, “Your sister needed to talk to her anyway.”

“I figured as much when Maggie said she was meeting Alex here,” Kara admits picking up a dart and throwing it at the board, hitting it dead center.

“Did you even aim?” Lena asks with a chuckle.

“Sometimes,” Kara admits with a grin. Her smile suddenly widens at the thought of another night here playing darts, what seems like so long ago now.

_Kara pushes her way through the door of Red’s with only one thought on her mind, forgetting. She makes her way around the bar, glad to see her customary seat is vacant and slides on to the bar stool._

_“Your usual,” Lucy says as she places a glass down in front of her._

_“Thanks,” Kara says and downs the whiskey in a gulp._

_“Ah,” Lucy says as she picks up the glass and quickly refills it, “girl troubles.”_

_“How can you possibly know that?” Kara asks in disbelief._

_“I’ve been working here since just after high school,” Lucy explains, “people come in here for one of four reasons.”_

_“Now this I’ve got to hear,” Kara says with a grin._

_“One, they’re bored and don’t know what else to do with themselves,” Lucy begins, “Two, they’ve had a rough day and have no good coping mechanisms. Three, they’re celebrating and four, relationship problems.” She points at Kara and amends, “or lack of relationships.”_

_“Ouch,” Kara says fainting hurt, “but also correct.”_

_“Kara, I’ve known you most of your life,” Lucy says kindly, “and ever since high school you’ve been having girl troubles and, if I’m not mistaken, it’s been about the same girl.”_

_“You’re not wrong,” Kara admits as she raises her glass to her lips and takes a sip._

_“Kara,” Lucy says, “just tell her how you feel.”_

_“Sure,” Kara says a bit more sarcastically than she made meant to, “first chance I get.”_

_The sound of the door opening causes Lucy to look over her shoulder at the new arrivals. With a grin she says to Kara, “Looks like you might get your chance.”_

_Kara follows her gaze and sees a group of boys she had gone to high school with enter, centered around Nate, who had been the quarterback of the football team, his only real accomplishment in life. The group were all laughing and being the idiots Kara knew them to be, and following close behind the group was Lena. For some reason Kara could never understand Lena dating Nate since their senior year of high school._

_“So much for forgetting,” Kara says as she drains the rest of her glass, dropping it hard back on to the bar top, where it is quickly refilled._

_Out of the corner of her eye Kara watches as the group takes seats at the far end of the bar, about as far away from her as they possibly could. She shifts her gaze back to her drink, hoping to forget about the newcomers. She regrets that decision shortly when she is startled by a pair of arms wrapping themselves around her from behind._

_“I didn’t know you’d be here tonight,” Lena says as she continues to hug her._

_“Kind of a spur of the moment thing,” Kara admits, giving Lena’s arm a light squeeze in return, “What brings you here tonight?”_

_“Oh, um, Nate wanted to meet up with friends, tell stories from high school we’ve all heard a hundred times, and get drunk off their asses, again” Lena says as she releases her hold on Kara._

_ Kara hears the frustration and disappointment lacing her friend’s voice and it pulls at her heart, “You could always join me for a few drinks if you’d like.”_

_“I’d like that very much,” Lena admits with a big smile and pulls the stool next to Kara out. She stops when Nate calls her name out from the other side of the room. “I guess I should get back. I’ll call you later.” With that she leaves, walking back around the bar._

_Three drinks later and Kara isn’t sure she can take the sound of the idiots across the bar laughing and telling stories much longer. She finishes off her most recent drink and glances over at the group. She sees Lena, sitting with the group but on the outside, having been completely forgotten by the others yet again._

_“Lucy, can I have the darts please?” she asks with Lucy comes to refill her drink again._

_“Can you still see straight enough to throw?” Lucy teases as she opens a bottle of beer for one of the other patrons at the bar._

_Kara huffs a laugh and answers, “Please, five drinks of whiskey and I can still shoot better than anyone else here.”_

_“Just do your best to only aim at the board,” Lucy smiles as she places the bin of darts on the counter for her, “even if they do deserve it.”_

_Kara chuckles but takes the bin and her drink and walks the short distance to the back of the bar, where the dart board hangs on the wall. She sets her glass and the bin of darts down on the nearby high-top table and pulls out three darts. She stretches out her shoulders and neck, and line up her first shot. Letting the dart lose, she hits her target and in quick order she releases the other two darts and feels herself start to relax just a little._

_“Do you ever miss?’ Lena asks from behind her._

_“Not often,” Kara replies as she lets one last dart lose, hitting the bullseye with ease._

_“Show off,” Lena smiles, a true smile, unlike the one she’s worn most of the night._

_Kara walks up to the board and pulls the darts free, then turning back around to face Lena asks, “So, how’s the boys’ night out going?”_

_“Thrilling,” Lena says, her voice laced with sarcasm. “We’ve been out of high school for four years now, you’d think they’d get bored telling the same stories over and over again.”_

_“Well, it’s not like they’ve done much of anything else since then,” Kara says without much thought._

_“That’s fair,” Lena says with a shrug. “Nothing really does change around here, does it?”_

_“Not much,” Kara admit grimly. “but some things do.”_

_Lena gives her a quizzical look and Kara smiles, “Remember when I told you I submitted my application to the FBI Academy?”_

_“Did you get accepted?” Lena asks._

_“I got through the first phase, yea,” Kara answers with a growing smile. “Since I’ve got my degree now it was a little easier. The thing is, for the next phase I need to actually be able to be there in person.”_

_“What does that mean exactly?” Lena asks and there’s no missing the concern in her voice._

_“Well, the academy is in Virginia, near D.C.,” Kara starts to explain, “so I’m going to be moving there, soon.”_

_“Oh,” Lena says slowly, “that’s far away.”_

_“It is,” Kara confirms, “I can’t stay here, not any longer than I already have.”_

_“I know,” Lena says sadly and the pained look on her face breaks Kara’s heart. She steps up next to Lena and takes her hand. Kara opens her mouth, trying to find the words, any words to make her friend less sad, but her voice fails her._

_“We should dance,” Lena says surprising Kara._

_“Dance?” Kara asks as if she doesn’t understand the word._

_Her hand still in Lena’s and feeling a bit stunned by the sudden change in topic, Kara lets herself be led over to the small dance area close to the dart board. As they step on to the floor the song changes to a slow one._

_“You want to dance to this?” Kara asks skeptically._

_“Why not?” Lena asks with a mischievous grin on her face, “Unless you’re afraid.”_

_Kara can’t help but chuckle at the challenge. Lena knows as well as anyone that Kara never backs down from a challenge. Kara wraps her arm around Lena’s waist and pulls her close, enjoying the momentary look of surprise that crosses her face._

_“Not at all,” Kara smiles as Lena nods, wrapping her arms around Kara’s neck. Kara does her best to keep her face calm, but she can feel her heart beat hard against her ribs and she only hopes that Lena can’t feel it as well._

_The sad look is still there, in Lena’s eyes, but Kara notices something else there now too, something she can’t place._

_Without thinking Kara says, “You could come with me.”_

_“What?” Lena asks, her turn to be surprised._

_“To Virginia,” Kara says, “If you wanted to, you could come with me.”_

_“You really think so?” Lena asks with just a bit of hopefulness in her voice. “You’d want me there with you?” Lena’s hand slide from around her neck and rest on Kara’s shoulders._

_“Of course,” Kara answers with a smile, “I couldn’t imagine going without you.”_

_“I think I’d like that,” Lena says in almost a whisper. Kara watches as Lena’s eyes seem to darken slightly and her gaze flickers down to Kara’s lips before quickly looking back to her eyes. Lena leans forward and rest her forehead against Kara’s and Kara allows her eyes to drift shut. If for just a moment it seems like the entire rest of the world had slipped away, the only thing she could feel was Lena._

_“Mind if I cut in?” Nate’s voice cuts in to the peace and Kara feels him place his hand on her arm._

_Kara takes a startled step back, breaking her contact with Lena, who looks just as startled as she feels. With a short nod to Nate Kara leaves the tiny dance floor behind and quickly makes her way back to where her drink sits. Picking it up she drains it in one go and tries to steady her breathing._

_“What the hell was that?” Kara mumbles to herself, shaking her head in hopes of clearing her thoughts. In frustration with herself Kara slam her hand down hard on the table in front of her._

_“Ouch,” she mumbles, her hand stinging from the impact._

_“That wasn’t bright now was it?” Lena says from behind her, a look of concern on her face._

_“No,” Kara answers with a sigh as she shakes out her hand. “Thought you were still dancing.”_

_“My favorite dance partner left me alone on the floor,” Lena answers._

_“What about Nate?” Kara asks slightly confused._

_“Yea, Nate, dumped him,” Lena says with a shrug, “Should have done that ages ago.”_

_Kara’s mind struggles to catch up and she can’t seem to make her mouth work._

_“Are you alright?” Lena asks a bit concerned._

_“Yea,” Kara says slowly, “just wondering how much I’ve had to drink tonight.”_

_“Six whiskies and you can still shoot and dance just fine,” Lucy answers from behind the bar with a grin._

_“Thanks Lucy,” Kara chuckles but looks back to Lena. “This is all real, right? Not some crazy dream?”_

_Lena takes a step closer to Kara and reaches out, pinching Kara’s arm. Kara yips slightly and Lena smiles, “See, wide awake.”_

_“Thanks,” Kara smiles. “We’re really doing this?”_

_“Hey, this was your idea,” Lena says as she leans in closer and gently places her lips against Kara’s._

_From behind the bar, Lucy watched the scene play out as she dried off a few glasses, “Took long enough,” she mumbles under her breath as she places the glasses back under the bar._


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wrapping up things at the bar, a short trip to see their mother and the Danvers sisters are back at the case. Trigger warning for this chapter as there is talk of past rape and assault.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also, there was a mention in the last chapter as to the night when Lena realized she had fallen in love with Kara, in the back of a cop car. I posted that little scene a few days back so if you're interested pop over and check it out.

“Have they always been like that?” Maggie asks as she looks over her shoulder to where Kara and Lena stand by the dart board, talking low. From here they couldn’t hear what the two were saying, but Kara was running her fingers up and down Lena’s arm and the two were smiling.

“Believe it or not, no,” Alex answers. “It took them five years to get this far.”

“Five long, painful years,” Lucy agrees as she sets two more drinks on the bar and tucks a stray strand of dark hair behind her ear, “but they got there eventually.”

“Sometimes the wait makes it worth it,” Maggie says with a grin to Lucy who blushes and goes off to help another patron.

“You’ve been flirting with her for four years,” Alex says lifting her drink to take a sip, “Are you ever going to ask her out?”

Maggie chuckles shortly and answers, “Lucy’s a nice girl. She shouldn’t want to be around someone like me.”

“You have a strange sense of your self-worth my friend,” Alex says and pats Maggie’s shoulder once.

“What did you need to talk about?” Maggie asks, changing the subject. “Did you identify Jane Doe?”

“No,” Alex frowns, “but Wally did find something on the body he missed the first time.” Alex pulls a picture out of her jacket pocket and hands it to Maggie.

After studying the picture for a few seconds Maggie mutters a curse, “Son of a bitch. How is this even possible?”

“I don’t know,” Alex says with a shake of her head.

“Is that a six?” Maggie asks looking closer.

“I thought that at first too,” Alex says, “look closer.”

Maggie squints and holds the picture closer, “Eight?” Alex’s only response is a nod and a sigh.

“And let me guess, behind the left ear?” Maggie says handing the picture back to Alex.

“Yup. Wally thought it was just an irritation when he first saw it,” Alex explains. “But when he took a second look, he noticed something was off. Took a picture and zoomed in.”

“Alex, there’s no way in hell this can be the same guy,” Maggie says as she takes a drink.

“How can you see all this and not think it’s him?” Alex asked a little confused.

“Because,” Maggie states plainly, “he was half way around the world from here.”

“What if he’s not?” Alex asks. “How do you explain this then?”

“Alex, there are a lot of crazy messed up people out there. We can’t make connections that may not be there,” Maggie sighs. “You’re tired and you need some sleep. Get some and maybe you can look at this thing with fresh eyes.”

“Fresh eyes,” Alex says with a short chuckle. “I’m not even sure I know what that looks like anymore.”

Maggie sighs again, “Get the two lovebirds over there and go home. Get some sleep and we can talk about it again tomorrow.”

Alex looks over her shoulder, to where Kara and Lena still stand, talking and laughing. How many times has Alex wished she could have something like that, something so pure and good. Someone to be there at the end of a long day, that understands some days are just worse than others and that some days words are not enough to describe the hell your mind plays on you.

Alex chuckles to herself, “Yea, maybe going home is a good idea.”

“Don’t worry about your tab,” Maggie says laying her hand on Alex’s shoulder and giving it a reassuring squeeze. “I’ve got you covered tonight.”

“You know I was buying drinks for the lovebirds, too right?” Alex asks raising an eyebrow.

“Eh, I owed your sharp shooter there a drink anyway. Besides, they’re alright people. You pay next time,” Maggie reasons with a shrug.

“Next time,” Alex agrees as she stands up and slides her coat off the back of her chair.

The movement catches Kara’s attention and her and Lena return to the bar area.

“Everything alright?” she asks with just a touch of concern in her voice.

“Yea,” Alex says, her gaze slipping back to Maggie for a second before she looks at her sister, “I just figured you’d probably want to pick Emma up soon and get her to bed.”

“Assuming your mother hasn’t already done that,” Lena says with a smile, pulling her coat from the chair.

“After last night,” Kara says, “I’m up for an early bedtime.”

“Good, everyone agrees then,” Maggie says with a grin, “go home and get some sleep.”

“Thanks,” Alex says, shrugging into her coat.

“Call me tomorrow,” Maggie says and to Kara she adds, “Raincheck on that rematch.”

“I’m here the next week and a half,” Kara smiles, wrapping her arm around Lena’s waist.

Maggie watches the small group make their way around the bar and disappear through the front door.

“Sheriff ok?” Lucy asks as she wipes down the bar. “She didn’t stay long.”

“Yea, she’s alright,” Maggie sighs, “Just working a case.”

“The Jane Doe?” Lucy asks.

“Why am I not surprised you know about that?” Maggie asks with a smirk.

“Bartenders are more popular than shrinks, people tell us everything,” Lucy smiles.

“I’m sure the Sheriff wouldn’t be happy to hear that,’ Maggie says, “but yea, that would be the case.”

“Things like that don’t happen around here,” Lucy frowns, leaning against the bar.

“So, I’ve learned,” Maggie chuckles, “I thought where I grew up we were close to our neighbors, its nothing like what it is around here.”

Lucy laughs but agrees, “It’s a different kind of existence but it has it’s pros.”

“That it does. The view around here is much better,” Maggie smiles at the bartender, causing her to blush again.

“Always a flirt,” Lucy smiles as she pushes away from the bar to help another customer.

Maggie watches her go for a moment with a smile, then lifts her beer and takes a long drink. As much as Maggie wants to believe that there’s no connection between this Jane Doe and the case they’d worked so many years ago together, it was hard to deny. Maggie knew how hard that case had been on all of them back then and she had already noticed the look in Alex’s eyes. They were all haunted by the ones that got away.

Maggie hesitates a moment before pulling her phone out of her pocket. She looks at it another moment before pulling up a contact number she hasn’t used in years. With a sigh she pushes the dial button and raises the phone to her ear.

It rings a few times and Maggie waits, biting her lower lip, hoping she’s doing the right thing.

When the other end picks up, she says, “Hey, it’s me. I need a favor.”

**

“Hi mom,” Kara says with a smile as her mother opens her front door.

“Kara!” her mother exclaims and throws her arms around her youngest daughter’s neck, pulling her in for a tight hug.

“Geez mom,” Kara chuckles, “it’s only been a few months.”

“Oh, I know,” her mother says pulling back to arm’s length to look at her daughter. “It’s just so nice to finally have you back home. And Lena,” she says letting go of Kara and pulling her daughter-in-law in to a bone crushing hug.

“It’s good to see you too Eliza,” Lena smiles returning the hug. Lena’s mother had died when she was a young girl and it hadn’t been until she moved to Bella Rosa that she had found a new motherly figure in Eliza Danvers. From day one, when Kara had brought a seventeen-year-old Lena home for dinner one day after school, Eliza had done everything possible to make Lena feel welcome. It had been a welcome change after so long.

“I take it you’re here to steal my grandchild,” Eliza says as she releases Lena with a smile.

“And here I thought we were rescuing our daughter,” Kara says with a smirk as Eliza ushers them inside.

“Hi mom,” Alex smiles as gives her mother a quick kiss on the cheek, stepping inside.

The house was considerably smaller than the one they had grown up in, but Eliza had done amazing things with it. The open floor plan flowed nicely from entry way, to living area and eat in kitchen and Eliza had added just enough furniture from the old house to make the place feel like home.

“Rescue hardly,” Eliza laughs. “We went shopping and had ice cream on the way here, then she wanted to play knights and princesses. Nearly wore me out.”

“Small body, big imagination,” Lena smiles, “Where is my little one?”

“Fell asleep about an hour ago,” Eliza answers as they walk in to the kitchen. “I put her in the guest room until you got here. Alex said she was taking you two out for a few welcome home drinks.”

“More like suck up drinks,” Kara chuckles, “she forgot to pick us up from the airport last night.”

“Alex Danvers,” her mother scolds and Alex gives her sister a droll look.

“You know we’re adults now, you can stop getting me in trouble with mom.”

“I will,” Kara shrugs, “when it stops being fun.”

“Brat,” Alex says with a grin

“Ass,” Kara shots back.

“Well, it’s good to have you two girls together again,” Eliza sighs.

“Have they always been this bad?” Lena asks, it’s a running joke between her and Eliza that started years ago, way back to the first time Lena had seen the sisters interacting.

“Some things never change,” Eliza responds with a nod. Turning a bit serious, Eliza looks to Kara and asks, “Kara, how’s work?”

“So far it’s been more paperwork than actual field work,” Kara sighs. “I’ve worked a few cases but nothing special. About as expected I guess.”

“Don’t listen to her,” Lena interjects, “She’s just being modest. They let her work the lead on her last two cases and the Behavioral Analysis Unit is considering her.”

“Really?” Alex asks looking at her sister with mild surprise on her face.

Kara shrugs, not planning on going in to details, glancing at Lena though, she decides she might as well, “Mainly because I have that dual major in Criminal Justice and Psych and because my masters are in Psych and Criminology.”

“And because you helped solve your last five cases by profiling the suspect,” Lena adds with a smile, taking Kara’s hand. It was clear by that smile just how proud Lena was of her wife and it didn’t surprise Alex one bit. She had never seen two people love and support each other as much as Lena and her sister did. For a passing moment Alex feels just the tiniest bit of jealously at the pair.

“That’s big news,” Eliza now scolds Kara, “you should have told us.”

“Well, I’m not actually on the BAU yet,” Kara explains, “It’s kind of like auditions. The lead of the team sends me old cases and I look over them, when I’m not working other cases, and I give him a profile of who I think could be responsible.”

“And how have you done so far?” her mother asks.

“Not bad,” Kara mumbles and Lena elbows her gently, “Haven’t been wrong yet.”

“I’m not surprised,” Eliza says with a smile.

“Still no guarantee he’ll choose me,” Kara huffs and decides to change the subject, “How are things at the hospital mom?”

“Boring,” her mother snorts a short laugh, “I don’t know why I ever thought taking Chief of Emergency was going to be exciting. Mostly paperwork.”

“Yea, but you run the ER,” Alex sighs, “it shows too. Place has never run better.”

“Suck up,” Kara coughs in to her hand and her sister gives her a playful nudge.

“While you two continue with the sibling rivalry I’m going to get the tiny human so we can all get to bed,” Lena says, giving Kara’s hand a small squeeze before heading down the small hallway leading to the bedrooms.

Kara watches her disappear through a door and turns back to her mother, “The house is really nice mom.”

“Thank you, sweetheart,” Eliza says wrapping her daughter in another hug, “I’m so glad you could make it home.”

Kara returns the hug but doesn’t reply. She had stopped thinking of this town as home years ago but wasn’t about to tell her mother that.

Before long, Lena emerges from the guest room with a still very much asleep Emma in her arms, the girl’s wild hair falling over much of her face.

“Did you have fun with grandma?” Kara asks the girl who nods vigorously in response. “Are you ready to go back to aunt Lexie’s and get some sleep?” The girl gives her a confused look, as if to say, _Did you really wake me up so I could go to sleep?_

“I recognize that look,” Alex laughs lightly, “You used to make the same one when you’d fall asleep on the living room floor and I had to wake you up to go to bed.”

“Well, she certainly didn’t inherit it from me,” Kara says, with just a hint of regret in her voice.

“Nurture over nature sis,” Alex smiles and pats her sister on the back.

“I’m like momma,” Emma says reaching out for Kara who instinctually reaches out for her daughter. The girl fits easily in to her arms and wraps herself around Kara, settling her head against Kara’s neck.

“That you are,” Lena agrees with a smile.

“Thanks for babysitting mom,” Kara says carefully leaning over and kissing her mother’s cheek.

“She’s my only grandbaby,” Eliza says retuning the gesture, “I don’t consider it babysitting.”

“Come to the house tomorrow for dinner?” Alex asks as she hugs her mother goodnight.

“As long as your sister isn’t cooking,” Eliza jokes.

“I wouldn’t dare let her near my stove,” Alex chuckles back, throwing a wink at Kara, who only rolls her eyes in response. “To be far you did almost burn the house down.”

“I was nine,” Kara defends, “and only almost.”

Eliza walks the small group to the door and gives Lena a hug, “Goodnight, my girls. I’ll see you all tomorrow.”

“Night mom,” Alex says as she pulls the door shut behind her and steps into the chilly air. Alex finally feeling like her mind was clear and that she may just get that good night’s sleep after all.

Nearly an hour later, after getting Emma settled in her room, Kara sat on the edge of their shared bed, head in her hands.

“Everything alright darling?” Lena asks from the doorway. She had been in the bathroom getting ready for bed and had come back to find Kara like this.

“Yea,” Kara answers looking up, “just tired.”

“Liar,” Lena says with a small smile as she walks in to the room and sits beside her.

“I was just thinking,” Kara starts then stops and takes a deep breath, “about Emma, about how no matter what she’s never,” she doesn’t get the chance to finish because Lena silences her by gently placing her hand on Kara’s cheek and turning her head to look at Lena.

“That little girl down the hall absolutely adores you,” she says quietly. “You’ve been there for her since the day she was born, before then even. It doesn’t matter if there’s blood there or not, that little girl is just like you. Hell, somedays I think she’s more like you than she’ll ever be like me,” Lena adds with a smile, making Kara chuckle once. “She is as much your daughter as she is mine.”

Kara closes her eyes, taking another deep breath and letting it out slowly.

“I love you,” she says in an almost whisper, opening her eyes, this time with a smile.

“Love you too,” Lena says, placing a small kiss on her wife’s nose, “now go get ready for bed. I find it incredibly difficult to sleep without my wife.”

“Yes ma’am,” Kara smiles, getting up from the bed and heading into the bathroom.

Lena sighs deeply after hearing the door close behind Kara, knowing that her wife’s overactive mind tends to get the better of her at times like this. Kara had never once acted as though Emma wasn’t her daughter, in fact it had surprised several people when they had found out that Kara was not in fact Emma’s biological mother.

The circumstances surrounding how Emma had come to be were less than ideal and, as far as Lena was concerned was the main reason Kara hated coming back here. In fact, they hadn’t been back here since before Emma’s birth, which was the backing for Lena’s belief.

_They had been living in Virginia for about six months when Kara had asked Lena to marry her, of course Lena had said yes and that had started the wedding planning. Eliza had been more than willing and eager to plan a wedding for her daughter and the woman she already considered a daughter and before long it was all planned out._

_They had flown back to Bella Rosa in April, nearly a year after leaving, for the wedding, both having put in for extended time off work for the trip. Everything had gone perfectly, most of the town showing up for the ceremony. Middle of spring had ended up being the perfect time, the mountains were beautiful and made for amazing wedding pictures._

_It had all been so wonderful no one would have ever guessed things would turn out the way they did._

_The couple had flown off to their honeymoon, two weeks spent exploring China and immersing themselves in the culture. When it had come time to leave neither of them had wanted to._

_They’d stopped back off at home before heading back to Virginia and to work, wanting to spend the last few days of their vacation time up with friends and family._

_The day before they were meant to fly home they had all been out at Red’s for drinks, Kara and Lena showing off pictures of the honeymoon. They’d been the happy married couple, dancing together and laughing with their friends before deciding to call it a night._

_Lena had stopped drinking hours before Kara and was sober by the time they left the bar. They had parked their car in the small parking lot behind the bar and by that time of the night most of the town had already called it a night. Almost everyone as it turned out._

_Before they had the chance to even reach their car, out of the shadows stepped Nate, Lena’s ex-boyfriend, who had been watching them the entire night from a corner of Red’s. He had taken one quick step towards Kara and caught her off guard with a right hook to her face, knocking her to the ground. Lena had rushed to her side only to find that Kara had been knocked out cold._

_Nate had quickly grabbed Lena’s arm and roughly pulled her away from Kara. She had done everything she could to fight him and get back to her wife, but he simply overpowered her. One of the strangest thoughts that had stuck in Lena’s brain from that day was the smell of beer on his breath._

_It hadn’t taken long for Alex to come looking for them but by the time she reached the dark parking lot, the damage had been done. She had found them, Kara still unconscious and Lena, now beaten and raped, sitting on the ground beside her apparently in a state of shock. Alex had called for an ambulance and done what she could until they had arrived. Lena had refused to leave Kara’s side, even after the ambulance had arrived._

_They’d been rushed to the hospital, where Eliza was waiting for them, Alex having called ahead to warn their mother of what had happened. When they’d arrived at the hospital, Kara still unconscious, they had been taken to separate exam rooms, much to Lena’s objections._

_Alex had stayed with Lena as their mother had taken care of Kara, coming to let them know that, while still unconscious, Kara was going to be ok. There had been an uncomfortable silence in the room when Lena was asked if she had been raped and when she had quickly nodded her head, unable to say the words out loud, Alex had been ready to hunt Nate down herself._

_Once the exams had been completed, including a rape kit and Lena was treated for her injures, which included a black eye and two broken ribs, along with a series of bruises on her legs, she had insisted on being by her wife’s side._

_Kara, who was suffering from a broken eye socket and severe concussion, hadn’t woken up until the following morning, confused and with no memory of what had happened. Lena had tried to explain it to her but hadn’t been able to form the words. That was when Alex had stepped in and told her sister everything._

_The recovery took several days but within a few weeks they were back home in Virginia. Not long after that, Lena had begun to feel ill and had gone to her doctor, worried about prolonged affects from the assault and rape. That was when she had been told she was pregnant._

_The news had been devastating to Lena, who worried what this would mean for her life moving forward. What would she do? What were her options? She was also terrified of telling Kara, unsure if she would even be able to find the words when her wife got home from work that night._

_When Kara had made it home she’d found Lena sitting in the corner of couch, legs curled up to her chest and tears streaming down her face. Kara had rushed to her side and held her as Lena struggled to find the words._

_It had been a night of tears and Kara had tried to sooth her wife as much as she could while trying to tamper her own anger at the pain Lena was going through. There was nothing, no words, that Kara could say to make it better._

_The following few days were filled with conversation, mostly one sided, as Lena talked through her options. Kara let her wife talk as much as she needed and made sure that she knew Kara was with her no matter what. She’d go with Lena to whatever appointments there were and hold her wife’s hand through it all._

_After many long days and hours upon hours of thinking about everything that it would mean for their lives, Lena had decided that she wanted to keep the baby._

_With Nate serving a lengthy term for assault, rape and attempted murder, it wasn’t hard to convince the judge to terminate any parental rights he may have had._

_It had taken time and several discussions with lawyers and more than one court date, but finally Kara had been allowed to legally adopt Emma._

The bathroom door opens, and Lena pulls the blankets back on their bed as Kara walks back in to the room.

“Ready for bed?” Kara says with a smile, any traces of doubt from before gone from her face.

“Waiting on you,” Lena replies with a matching smile as she slides in to bed.

“The wait is over,” Kara climbs in to bed next to her wife, kissing her lightly on the lips as she does. “I’m sorry about earlier. My head just got going and I started overthinking.”

“Nothing to worry about my love,” Lena answers returning the kiss a bit more passionately.

Kara smiles and reaches over to the bedside table, turning off the light.

It felt like Kara had just closed her eyes when she was jarred awake by the sound of someone saying her name. Not someone, her wife, Lena was saying her name and Kara jumped awake.

“Kara, love,” Lena was saying in a barely awake voice, “Kara, answer your phone please.”

Feeling a bit dazed, Kara blindly reaches for her phone that she had left on the bedside table. It takes her several tries to actually reach it and even more attempts to be able to answer it.

“Yea, um, Agent Danvers,” Kara says in to the phone. It was how she had become used to answer the phone for work and her sleepy brain fell back in to what it knows best.

“Kara,” Alex’s voice comes through the line, sounding stern. _That’s her Sheriff’s voice_, Kara thinks to herself.

“Alex, what the hell,” Kara says confusion thick in her voice, “When the hell did you leave the house?” She lifts her phone from her ear to check the time, “Jesus, it’s 2:12 in the fucking morning. Where are you?”

Lena, who had rolled onto her back to wake Kara, reached a calming hand out to lay on Kara’s arm, silently reminding her to not lose her temper just because she was tired.

Alex hesitates and Kara hears a noise, Alex looking at her watch to confirm the time.

“Sorry about that,” Alex says gloomily, “and I left the house about an hour ago.”

“You’re sounding very official sis,” Kara says as she tries to wake herself up more.

“Yea, well, we found another body,” Alex hesitates then adds, “I think I might need that help you offered earlier.”

With that news Kara comes fully awake, her mind kicking in to work mode, “Where?”

Something about the tone in Kara’s voice and the sudden stillness of her body causes Lena to widen her eyes in question, clearly, she was slightly more awake now too.

“Off Route 14, near Johnson’s Farm,” Alex answers. “Haven’t moved anything from the crime scene, thought maybe you’d want to see it for yourself.”

“Absolutely,” Kara answers, “just give me some time to get dressed and I’ll be there.”

“Alright,” Alex says then adds, “Sorry,” before hanging up.

“They found another body, didn’t they?” Lena asks as Kara hangs up and lays her phone on her chest.

“Yea,” Kara sighs, turning her head to look at her wife, “and she’s actually asking for help, and preserving the scene until I get there.”

“Sounds like you need to go darling,” Lena says patting her shoulder.

“You aren’t mad?” Kara asks.

“No, I actually encouraged Alex to talk to you about the case,” Lena admits. “Turn the light on love and get dressed.”

“When were you going to tell me you talked to Alex about the case?” Kara asks as she gets out of bed and flicks on the light, blinding herself for a moment.

“When it came up,” Lena shrugs, “which it just did.” Lena sits up in the bed, pulling the blanket up with her, “Did you pack a suit?”

“I did,” Kara says opening the small closet in her former room, “but I’m not going to wear one tonight. I can’t do anything official. I’m just offering advice to local law enforcement.”

“Advice, which could include involving your team,” Lena reasons.

“It could, but I’ll worry about that when it comes up,” Kara says as she pulls on her jeans.

“How long do you think you’ll be out there?” Lena asks.

“No idea yet,” Kara answers with a sigh as she pulls on a hoodie. “I’m going to need to get a good look at the scene and talk to Alex. Hopefully we should both be back by breakfast.”

“I’ll keep the princess entertained until you get back,” Lena says as she stretches out on the bed and yawns.

“I’ll text you when I have a better idea,” Kara says as she sits on the side of the bed to tie her boots, “but try to get some sleep.”

“That’s my plan,” Lena assures as she stretches her hand out to touch Kara’s leg lightly.

Kara smiles and leans back on to the bed, kissing Lena sweetly before getting up.

“Have I ever mentioned how much I love you?” Kara asks as she reaches the bedroom door.

“Once or twice,” Lena smiles. “Hurry back love.”

Kara winks in response before turning out the light again and heading down the stairs. Lena waits until she hears the front door quietly open and close, then lays back against the pillows with a sigh. As much as Lena had been against the idea of Kara doing anything like work while they were on vacation, she was at least glad that Alex had reached out for help. Hopefully between the two of them they would be able to bring this to a quick end.

**

Maggie lifted another bar stool and placed it upside down on the bar as she’d done so many times before. Due to her always working the overnight shifts on the ambulance Maggie had long since given up on ever being able to really sleep during normal sleeping hours. In a town like this there wasn’t much to do during the overnight hours, the entire place was pretty much in bed by eleven, the only place that remained open was Red’s.

That was how Maggie had developed the habit of going to Red’s on her nights off and staying until close. It wasn’t that she sat there and got drunk night after night, though she watched many people do just that. Having spent some time in big cities, Maggie had gotten used to being around people, so she’d go to the bar, people watch and start up conversations with whoever happened to be out that night.

In the long run it had worked out in her favor, she had gotten to know a good number of people in town and had in return ended up being one of those new people in town that was actually liked by the general population. In other cities around the country strangers came and went unnoticed but here a stranger in town nearly made the local news.

It could be a bit daunting to be ‘the new guy’ in town but luckily Maggie had a naturally charismatic way about her, most called her a flirt. Not that she was denying that fact, Maggie knew she could be a flirt when she really wanted to be.

“You know you don’t have to do that,” Lucy said, same as she does every night that Maggie stays to help.

“Beats going to the gym,” Maggie says with a grin. “Besides, you busted your ass off all night, least I can do.”

“You have any idea how much time you save me by doing that?” Lucy asks with a smile. “I’m going to go to the back and lock everything up for the night. Be right back.”

“I’ll be here,” Maggie says as she lifts the final barstool. Lucy was the only employee most days at Red’s and while crime wasn’t a big problem here, the place had been robbed twice at the end of the night before Maggie had moved to town. When Lucy had mentioned that, Maggie asked her if she was ever worried about closing by herself all the time. Lucy had shrugged and said those kinds of things weren’t worth worrying about.

Maggie had let it go until one night when she had struck around a bit later than normal and had watched as two of the drunk locals had started harassing Lucy and getting handsy. Without thinking, Maggie had stepped in and convinced the men to leave without any violence. Since then, Maggie had started making it her habit to hang out and make sure Lucy got locked up alright.

Even on nights when Maggie worked, she did her best to keep in touch with Lucy while she closed, they had exchanged phone numbers a long time ago. It wasn’t that she didn’t think Lucy could handle herself, it was more that Maggie took care of the people she cared about and of all the people in town, Alex and Lucy were top on her list.

“All locked up,” Lucy announces as she emerges from the back office.

“That was fast,” Maggie says, standing by the small opening leading behind the bar where only employees go.

“I just did a quick count,” Lucy shrugs. “I’ll finish doing the books when I come in tomorrow.”

“The benefits of finally owning the place?” Maggie asks with a smile. Lucy had worked at the bar since graduating high school and a year ago the owner had finally decided that he wanted to retire and had made Lucy an offer she couldn’t pass up.

“Hmm, yes,” Lucy says as she leans against the bar next to Maggie. “You know when I started working here, I had no plans of owning it one day.”

“Is that a good thing or bad thing?” Maggie asks.

Lucy thinks a moment before answering, “Good. I really like this place and what I do. It fits me.”

Maggie took that moment to again appreciate the woman standing in front of her. Lucy stood about the same height as Maggie which was nice since most people were taller than Maggie. She wasn’t muscular but fit in a way that comes from a lifetime of hard work, and her dark hair hung around her shoulders in soft curves. It wasn’t often that she let her hair down, preferring to keep it pulled back for work but, when she did Maggie marveled at how it almost always fell across her face, hiding it just a little. For Maggie, it always added to the allure of the woman. Seeing her working in her element always seemed to make her skin glow and her smile radiated light throughout the dim lights of the bar.

“It definitely looks good on you,” Maggie says in a low voice before she thinks it through, earning her a shy look from the bartender next to her. Maggie clears her throat a bit nervously and says, “So, um, you’ve known the Danvers sisters for a long time?”

“Yea,” Lucy nods. “I went to high school with Kara, graduated two years before her.”

“What were they like back then?” Maggie asked, turning to lean with her back against the bar.

Lucy hesitates before answering, “Alex always seemed like she had something to prove, like she had to earn her name. Their father left big shoes to fill in this community.” Lucy sighs a bit sadly and adds, “Kara was the complete opposite. It was like she knew what everyone expected from her and just didn’t give a damn. She was going to do her own thing and be her own person and screw anyone that thought she should be otherwise,” she finishes with a fond smile.

“Can’t say I blame her, or Alex for that matter,” Maggie nods.

“Me either,” Lucy agrees, “I wouldn’t have wanted to grow up with that on my shoulders.”

“What about their brother?” Maggie asked, getting a startled look from Lucy that quickly turns sad.

“How did you hear about that?” Lucy asks as she pushes herself off the waist high bar and into the bartender area.

“I don’t think I have to tell you how rumors are around here,” Maggie says in way of an answer. She turns to watch Lucy as she picks up two short glasses from under the bar and places them in front of Maggie. “I feel like this is going to be an unpleasant conversation.”

“Missing children are usually unpleasant,” Lucy agrees as she pulls a bottle of Jack Daniels from beneath the bar. She pours two fingers worth in to each glass and sets the bottle down on the counter. Maggie decides to wait her out and picks up her glass, taking a small sip.

“I think I was in second grade when it happened,” Lucy starts. “Kara had just started school and Alex was in middle school, their brother, Rick, was in my class. Everyday Alex would walk down to the elementary school and walk the other two home. One day, Rick wasn’t there.”

“Wasn’t there?” Maggie asks.

“Alex was running late that day, she was stuck at school helping one of her teachers,” Lucy continues. “By the time she got to the school, the only one there was Kara. She said that Rick got bored and went to play under the one tree at the back of the school, but he wasn’t there.”

“No one saw anything?” Maggie asks lifting her glass again.

“It was the end of the school day, kids and parents were running all over the place,” Lucy sighs, “Everyone thought he must have wondered off in to the woods or something. It’s easy for a grown person to get lost out there, let alone a seven-year-old.” Lucy finished off her first drink and poured a second, refilling Maggie’s glass too. “By that evening they had put together search teams to check the woods around the school.”

“But they didn’t find anything,” Maggie says. She had learned long ago to never phrase anything as a question if you knew the answer.

“They found his backpack and coat in the woods right before dark that first day, but no, they never found anything,” Lucy answers. “It was hard on the whole family, the Sheriff barely left the station after that, he was obsessed with finding Rick and it put a strain on everyone. I think Alex still blames herself for it, to be honest.”

“I can just imagine,” Maggie nods.

“The whole town was a mess for awhile after that. I mean, if the Sheriff’s own kid can just vanish like that, was anyone safe? I remember my parents talking about that one night,” Lucy admits with a sad look. “It was only a year after that, that the Sheriff was killed trying to stop a murderer.”

Maggie stays quiet for several long moments before lifting her drink and finishing it all in one go. With a sigh she sits the glass back on the bar, nodding her head.

“Make sense now?” Lucy ask, tilting her head to the side just a bit in question.

“A lot yea,” Maggie admits. “Thank you, for filling me in.”

“I’m actually surprised you hadn’t already heard about it,” Lucy says as she replaces the bottle under the counter. “Seems like you and the Sheriff are close.”

“We’re friends sure,” Maggie nods slowly, “but we made a deal with each other years ago. Never to push too much to make the other talk about their past. We’d both be willing to listen to the other, but we were never to push the matter. So, I never did.”

“Seems fair,” Lucy reasons. The look on her face, Maggie could tell she was trying to figure out what secrets Maggie might be carrying.

“It’s worked so far,” Maggie smiles.

“But you and Alex have always just been friends?” Lucy asks and Maggie can’t help but chuckle at that. “I mean you did move out here because she told you that you should.”

“That’s true,” Maggie agrees. “So, I got deployed one time after Alex got sent home. It was a rough deployment and by the end I had gotten myself hurt pretty badly. I was in the hospital for almost a year, there were a lot of times where I didn’t think I’d make it through the recovery. I didn’t have family or visitors while I was there and that made it rougher.” Maggie sighs, she doesn’t usually share so many details but decides to keep going, “Alex flew out to the military hospital I was in twice a month to visit me and push me through the recovery. If it hadn’t been for her pushing me, I’m not sure I would have made it.”

“Wow,” Lucy says at length, “I had no idea.”

“Nobody does,” Maggie shrugs. “I didn’t expect to like it enough to stay here.”

“Well, whatever it was that changed your mind,” Lucy says with a smile, “I’m glad you stayed.”

“Me too,” Maggie agrees returning the smile.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danvers sisters working the case together.

For as long as Kara could remember she had loved spending time in the woods that backed up to her childhood home. It was an escape from the world she was forced to grow up in and into a world where her imagination ruled, where she could be anything or anyone she wanted to be. It wasn’t that she had a bad childhood, far from it. There were just times when Kara wanted to forget the bad things that had happened, pretend they belonged to someone else.

When she had been a teenager, the woods had become a kind of retreat for Kara. A place to go where she didn’t have to be the dead Sheriff’s daughter, or Alex’s sister, or the sister of that kid that went missing all those years ago. There she could just be Kara, even if she hadn’t figured out what that meant yet. Laying there under the thick canopy of leaves, Kara felt like she could finally breath, with no eyes on her, expecting her to be something.

Their father had been something of a legend in town. A place as small as Bella Rosa the Sheriff was more well known than even the Mayor. He’d been made immortal in town when he had been killed attempting to apprehend a serial killer who had been traveling through the county for years. After that, the girls were expected to follow their father in to local law enforcement. Kara had felt trapped, like she had never had a choice, she knew who she was expected to be before she had ever had a chance to decide on her own.

When Alex had left to join the Army, the gaze of the town had fallen on her, watching to see what she would do. As high school crawled on, the increased pressure had started to get to her. Kara would come home and go straight to the woods, leaving the town and the looks behind her. Stepping in to the woods was like stepping in to her own world. The woods were a safe place.

Stepping in to the woods tonight however, everything felt different, dangerous even. Even the air seemed to feel heavier, like it weighed down on all of them. Kara would have liked to blame the cold air for the ominous feeling that hung in the air but deep down she knew better.

“Morning Tim,” Kara says as she approaches the Deputy left to keep an eye on the perimeter of the crime scene.

“Is it, morning?” Tim asks with half a smile. “Always hard to tell on overnights when it’s morning.”

“Working in the dark will do that to you,” Kara grins.

“I didn’t know the Sheriff had called for the Feds yet,” Tim says, not as a question.

“Hey, I’m just a tourist,” Kara answers with a smile. Tim shakes his head with a chuckle as she walks past, deeper in to the woods.

A few steps further and Kara can hear a few voices coming from the trees in front of her.

“How much longer do you want us to wait to move the body?” even though it’s been years since she’d left this town behind her, she’d remember the sound of Wally’s voice anywhere.

“Not much longer,” she hears Alex answer.

“I’ll only need a few minutes Wally,” Kara says stepping in to the clearing and scaring Wally’s two assistants, causing them both to jump. “Sorry about that,” Kara adds, trying to keep the smirk off her face.

“Little Danvers,” Wally greets her with a smile, “it’s been ages. How are you?”

“Cold and tired,” Kara answers shaking the older man’s hand with a smile, “but doing good. You should stop by and see Lena and Emma before we leave.”

“I’d like that,” Wally smiles, “That is if your sister here stops keeping me so busy.”

Kara turns her attention to her sister, standing looking down at a young woman laying in the snow at her feet. If Kara was guessing the woman had to be in her early twenties, with flowing brunette hair that rested over her shoulders. Her eyes were closed, and her skin was almost as white as the snow she lay upon, the only color on the girl was the blue tint on her still lips. From where Kara stood, the girl looked very peaceful.

The only thing that stood out were the marks running the length of both her arms and legs. Taking a step closer Kara sees that the marks are actually cuts, one long cut on each of the extremities.

“This like the first one?” Kara asks her sister who nods. “Alright,” Kara says with a sigh and begins making a slow circle around the body. Except for what Kara was sure were the boot prints of the responders the snow looked perfectly untouched around the body.

“Did it snow at all tonight?” Kara asks of no one in particular.

“No snow since yesterday,” Alex answers.

“How’d you find her?” Kara asks still looking at the body.

“Anonymous 911 call, same as last time,” Alex says as she watches her sister.

Kara doesn’t respond but continues to take in the scene in front of her. She’d studied dozens of crime scene photos from cases involving serials but none of them had felt like this. Kara wasn’t sure if it was the manner this body had been disposed of, or if it was the fact that this was the first one she’d gotten to see in person.

“All these footprints are accounted for,” Kara says in a low voice, more to herself than anyone around her but her sister does hear.

“Yea, the only ones down here have been us and the ambulance crew,” Alex answers referring to herself, Steve and Wally.

“What about those marks there?” Kara asks pointing to a small spot by the victim’s head.

“What?” Alex asks taking the few steps that separate them to see where Kara was pointing.

“Here,” she says as she walks them to the spot. The snow shows just the slightest signs of having been disturbed. “See here, it looks like the snow was moved.” Kara picks up the small pine tree branch that had covered most of the area.

“Still no foot prints,” Alex says as she watches, “but it looks like someone used the branch to try and cover them up.”

“Five bucks says we’ll find prints if we follow this out,” Kara smiles at her sister.

“Let’s go,” Alex says as she pulls her flashlight from its holder and flips it on. Kara follows suit and pulls her own flashlight out of her back pocket.

“Stay here, we won’t be long,” Alex says to Wally as they step into the woods.

They head in to the woods together and are several steps away from the other when Alex asks, “You really think we’re going to find something out here?” Walking into the middle of the woods at this time of night is like stepping into a black hole, nothing but darkness and trees, most of which you can’t see until you’re right on top of it.

“Without a doubt,” Kara says, and Alex can hear the smile in her voice.

“You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?” she asks with a chuckle.

Kara laughs and answers, “I was just thinking, this reminds me of when we were kids. All the time we spent in the woods together.”

“Those were good times,” Alex agrees. “This is slightly different though. Didn’t have guns back then and we weren’t looking for a serial killer.” Since the minute they’d stepped into the woods Alex’s hand has been on the grip of her service weapon. Looking over at Kara now, Alex sees that her sister’s hand is doing the same. The only difference between the two being that Kara’s was clipped to the side of her jeans, while Alex’s sat secured on her duty belt.

“They let you carry those things on planes?” Alex asks with a sideways grin.

“Secured in my checked bag,” Kara answers as she stops to look at something on the ground. “Alex, look at this.”

“Those are not footprints,” Alex says as she at what Kara found. Two nearly perfect tread marks blemish the otherwise perfectly undisturbed snow.

“No,” Kara agrees as she squats down and pulls out her phone, snapping several pictures of the tread marks, “but I’m willing to bet those are snowmobile treads. That’s how he gets them out here.”

“He’s somewhere in the woods,” Alex breaths as Kara comes back to her full height.

“Good guess,” Kara says looking out in to the vast darkness in front of them.

“Let’s head back,” Alex suggests, “we aren’t going to get anywhere stumbling around the woods in the dark.”

“Right,” Kara agrees, and they begin to make their way back to the scene guided by the lights they had set up to light the scene. “I want to take a closer look at the body while it’s still here.”

“That was the idea, and I’m sure Wally is ready to get in out of the cold,” Alex says as they break through the darkness and step back into the lit area of the crime scene.

“Find something?” Wally asks, wrapping his coat tighter around himself.

“Tread marks in the snow,” Alex answers, “might be something.”

“Let’s hope so,” Wally nods.

“Just need a few more minutes here Wally,” Alex says with a huff, “right Kara?”

Nodding her head Kara crouches down next to the head of the victim, studying the body again. Clothed only in a light white dress that leaves her shoulders and lower legs bare, she would have frozen to death had she not already been dead.

“So, he dressed her before he dropped her off,” Kara mumbles then looks to her sister, “Anything I’m obviously missing?”

“Check behind her left ear,” Alex says gesturing with her chin.

“Wally?” Kara asks and the older man steps forward and hands her a rubber glove.

“Thanks,” she says and pulls it on easily. That was something she had never expected to get used to but after helping work on a few cases, she found that it wasn’t that difficult at all. Carefully turning the victim’s head, Kara looks behind the ear only to see a red, irritated area.

With a frustrated sigh Kara pulls out a small flashlight she keeps in her pocket and flicks it on, lighting up the small area behind the victim’s ear. Squinting her eyes to see better she can just make out something carved in to the skin.

“Is that roman numerals?” she asks, looking back to Alex, “A nine?”

Grimly her sister nods, folding her arms across her chest.

Kara takes another look at the number then turns the flashlight back off, returning it to her pocket. She slowly lets the woman’s head drift back to its original position, careful to make sure it does so gently. She stands up and pulls the glove off, turning it inside out as she does and stuffs it in to her pocket as well.

She takes another few seconds to burn the image in to her mind before looking at Wally and says, “Thanks for holding the scene Wally, you can take her now.”

Wally nods and calls for his two assistants, who had been waiting just a few feet away.

Kara walks over to where her sister stands, arms still crossed over her chest, and sighs.

“What do you think?” Alex asks after a moment. She hadn’t moved her gaze from where Wally and the two assistants were working on getting the woman in to the body bag they’d placed next to her.

“You’re not going to like it,” Kara answers.

That was enough to get Alex to tear her gaze from the scene and look at Kara. She lifts an eyebrow in question and waits her out. That was always one of the most frustrating things about Alex, she was a master at waiting people out until they finally crack and give in.

“You’ve got a serial,” Kara gives in with a sigh, “and it’s beyond obvious that he’s been at this for a while. We just don’t know where.”

“I know,” Alex says in nearly a growl, earning a surprised look from Kara.

“You know?” she asks when her sister says nothing else.

“These aren’t the first bodies like this I’ve found,” she reveals in a low voice.

“What the hell are you talking about?” Kara all but hisses, gaining a look from the other three in the immediate area.

Alex looks at the others and gestures for Kara to follow her as she takes a few steps away from the crime scene. They pass Tim, ending up standing close to Kara’s rented vehicle.

“What the hell do you mean these aren’t the first bodies?” Kara repeats her question barely keeping her anger in check. “You fucking knew you had a serial out here?”

“Kara,” Alex says holding her hands up to stop her. “It wasn’t here.”

Kara freezes, snapping her mouth shut and watching her sister for a moment, trying to determine if she’s being serious or not. Alex gives her sister a second to collect her thoughts and watches as the color in her eyes changes just slightly as her mind links things together.

“You mean you dealt with this in Afghanistan?” she asks, sounding a bit unsure.

“Before I got hurt, we found two bodies that are a near match to these two,” Alex explains in a low voice.

“Alex,” Kara says in an almost warning tone, “there’s no way we can know for sure that those two cases are related. Not unless you have case files we can review.”

Alex was already shaking her head before Kara had finished speaking.

“I didn’t get to see what happened. I was sent home before we had a chance to investigate too much, but I do know that they were never caught,” Alex explains, and Kara can’t miss the undertone of anger in her sister’s voice.

“Alright,” Kara says at length as she tries to figure out what their next move should be. “There’s not much we can do right now,” she says, and when she gets a look from Alex she adds, “It’s the middle of the night, none of the offices we need are open for a few more hours.”

Alex blows out a deep breath, “I’m not sure I can sleep right now.”

“Then don’t,” Kara suggests, “but go home, take off your uniform and let your mind rest for a little. Sitting at your desk looking at pictures of this scene until you pass out isn’t going to solve anything.”

“You make it sound so simple,” Alex sighs again.

“It’s not,” her sister shrugs in response, “but you know I’m right. First thing in the morning I’ll make a few phone calls and see what information I can get. You do know that if you want the FBI’s help, you have to make a special request.”

“I thought that’s why you were here,” Alex says with a crooked smile.

“I’m not actually on the BAU yet,” Kara smiles back, “but I can call the agent in charge and see what he thinks. The official request still has to come from local law enforcement.”

Alex thinks on that for a moment before saying, “Alright. I’ll look into it after I talk to Wally tomorrow, after the autopsy.”

“Did Wally give you a time he plans on doing that?” Kara asks as she leans against the front of her rental.

“Nine,” Alex answers and chuckles shortly, “Said he’s going to need a few hours of sleep before diving in to another one of these.”

“Can’t blame him,” Kara huffs, her breath turning in to a cloud in front of her. “So, how much do you have to do until you’re finished up here?”

“We had everything done before you got here,” Alex shrugs in her coat. “I just figured you’d want to see her before we moved her.”

Kara nods her head and says, “Thanks. How about we head back to the house for a few hours? I’ll make some calls when the sun comes up.”

Alex nods but Kara can feel her hesitate, so she adds, “We’re going to work this Alex. I won’t let it go anymore than you will,” she promises her sister.

With a sigh of resignation Alex nods her agreement, “Alright little sis. You win this time. I’ll meet you at the house.”

“You better,” Kara chuckles as she pushes off the hood of the car, “or I’ll send Lena out to bring you home.”

“You do know it’s against the law to threaten a law enforcement official like that?” Alex chuckles as she moves towards her cruiser.

Kara cocks her head to the side and says, “And yet I think you’re more scared of her, than I am of you arresting me.”

Alex’s laugh is her only response as she walks away. Kara opens the door to her rental and slides in, pulling the door closed behind her, hoping to keep as little of the cold from entering the vehicle with her as possible.

Resting her head on the head rest Kara lets out a low growl. _This is going to be even harder than I thought,_ Kara thinks to herself as she turns the ignition and the engine roars to life.

For a brief moment she considered send an email to Agent Henshaw, the head of the BAU team she was currently trying to join, but quickly decided against it. This was more of a phone call conversation than an email one.

In a few minutes, she was pulling up to the curb in front of her sister’s house. She hesitated to turn off the engine and go inside. Kara had been certain that Alex had left the scene shortly after her, however she hadn’t seen any headlights behind her during the short drive and wasn’t sure that her sister was actually going home.

Kara sat in the car, radio turned down, and looked at the house that she had grown up in. The times she missed this place were far and few between, but they did happen. Not everything from here held bad memories, in fact, the majority of them were rather good.

Before her mind could take her down memory lane, a set of headlights light up the street in front of her and she watches as Alex’s cruiser pulled into the driveway. Kara signed and shut off the car, opening the door she walked up the small sidewalk until she reached the driveway.

“Decided to enjoy the cold?” Alex teases as she closes the door to her cruiser.

“Just making sure you were actually coming home,” Kara answers as they walk up the pathway through the front yard.

“I’ll be the first to admit, I did consider going to the station,” Alex admits as she unlocks the front door.

“What changed your mind?” Kara asks as they step inside, stopping the cold from following them by quickly closing the door.

“Besides the threat of your wife coming after me?” Alex asks with a grin as Scout comes trotting up to them. Alex reaches down and pats the dog on the head, rewarded with a smile from the beast. “I may be stubborn and a workaholic,” Alex admits, then sighs and adds, “but I also know when there’s nothing more I can do.”

“Until later,” Kara agrees. “We’re kind of stuck until after the autopsy. Until then, we can look over pictures from the scenes until you think you can sleep.” Alex gives her sister a look and Kara replies, “I know you have copies and you can access the files from your computer here.”

“No sense in arguing with you then,” Alex laughs as she heads into the small room she’d converted in to her office.

“I keep trying to tell you that,” Kara grins as she follows her sister, Scout right behind them.

“Cute,” Alex says, as she rounds her desk and pulls open a drawer on the top. “I have print outs of the first crime scene here,” she says as she pulls a folder from the drawer, “pictures from tonight will be on the Department’s network.”

“Alright, well, might as well start with the first one then,” Kara says as Alex hands her the folder. She flips it open and is met with the face of the first Jane Doe, eyes closed and looking as peaceful as the woman they had found tonight. “Well,” Kara says clearing her throat, “he certainly has a type. These two could almost be sisters.”

“Nearly identical,” Alex confirms as she sits behind her desk, opening her laptop and turning it on. “Same goes for the scenes. Position of the body, no foot prints, or any evidence for that matter.”

“Clearly he’s been at this for a while,” Kara says as she looks through the pictures. “Even if he wasn’t numbering them, it’s obvious he’s perfected his technique and that takes time.”

Alex says nothing as she watches her sister look through the file. Alex can’t deny that something about Kara’s overall demeanor changes when she’s working. Her eyes focus and harden, and her face takes on a look that Alex has never seen before and can’t quite place.

“They aren’t killed there,” Kara continues without thought, “and there aren’t any marks other than the lacerations. No signs that they were restrained,” Kara says with a small frown, causing her forehead to crease slightly. “Does she look familiar to you at all?” Kara asks, surprising Alex.

“What?” she asks, blinking a few times to clear her thoughts.

“I thought the girl tonight looked familiar but looking at these pictures,” Kara says as she hands one over to Alex, “I swear she looks like Lucy and your first girlfriend, Vicky. Doesn’t she?”

Alex hesitates as she studies the picture of Jane Doe’s face, not wanting to make the connection between her friend and these poor girls. The more she looks at the picture the more Alex realizes her sister is right, causing a lump to rise in her throat.

“Sorry,” Kara says as she watches her sister, “I didn’t mean to bring up your ex.”

“That was high school,” Alex says swallowing hard as she sits forward and places the picture on her desk, “ancient history now. I guess I just didn’t want to make the connection, but you’re right, they do look a lot alike. Think it means anything?”

“Hard to say,” Kara admits with a sigh, “but if we can figure out the victimology it could help us figure out more about him. Maybe even where he hunts.”

“Hunts?” Alex asks a bit surprised by the term.

“It’s a crud word but it fits,” Kara shrugs. “You’d be surprised how many times they’ve caught a serial by learning where and how they get their victims.”

“Studying the victim to understand the killer,” Alex nods her head in understanding. When Kara raises an eyebrow at her Alex chuckles and adds, “You know I have done some criminal investigation in my time.”

“Fair enough,” Kara chuckles, “but you’re right. Victimology is a relatively new science but its an important one. There’s actually a specialist on the BAU team I’ve applied to that specializes in it. She’s really good too.”

Alex waits for a heartbeat before saying, “Do you think the team would be able to help us figure this mess out?”

“They could,” Kara shrugs and when her sister gives her a hard look adds, “Listen, I can’t tell you they can solve this, but they have resources that you don’t here, and specialists that can see things we can’t.”

“If I ask them for help,” Alex says, “and that’s still an if, this is still my investigation.”

“They only come to help, not take over,” Kara assures. There’s another pause and Kara closes the folder and sets it back on the edge of Alex’s desk. “So, tell me what happened in Afghanistan.”

That clearly catches Alex off guard as her head snaps up to look at the woman sitting across from her. For a brief moment Kara watches as a shadow seems to cross over her sister’s face and Alex’s eyes seem to see past her, to places Kara can’t even imagine.

“Alex,” Kara says softly and watches as the distant look in Alex’s eyes vanishes and once again Alex is looking at her, the clouded expression on her face remains though. “The bodies, that you found in Afghanistan, can you tell me about them?”

“Yea, um,” Alex says, shaking her head in an attempt to clear it. “There isn’t much to tell that we haven’t already seen. They were laid out on the floors of empty huts with their hair laid out around their heads.” Alex hesitates then asks, “How important is the description of the victim?”

“Usually, very,” Kara says, still watching her sister, “it helps us to make a map of where they find them, and their mind set. They don’t usually vary from their type either.”

“I think this one did though,” Alex says plainly, “The bodies we found in Afghanistan were blonde.”

“That’s interesting,” Kara says slowly. “It’s rare but sometimes their victim type evolves, but not often.”

“There’s something else,” Alex says with a long sigh, “the numbers on the bodies over there were marked eleven and twelve.”

Kara is stunned silent but does matter to say, “That doesn’t make sense.”

“Counting down maybe?” Alex suggests with a frown.

“I guess that’s a possibility,” Kara agrees but sounds doubtful, “but that and the change in victims and locations, I just don’t know if it’s the same.”

“It’s the same,” Alex says and there’s no room for argument in her voice.

“Any chance you have reports or records, or even pictures of the scene?” Kara offers.

“No,” Alex says with a shake of her head she sits back in her seat, “working a case for the military isn’t like working one here. All the records are locked up. They never closed that case so who knows where those records ended up.”

“Well, if you call the BAU in, they may be able to get a hold of those records,” Kara suggests, “no guarantees though and no idea how long that could take either. Unless you still have connections,” Kara offers.

“No,” Alex shake her head again,” I didn’t keep in touch with anyone except Maggie and that was just by chance.”

“Alright,” Kara says squeezing her eyes shut for a moment. “I can send an email to Agent Henshaw, the agent in charge of the team, and give him a heads up, in case you call.”

Alex rubs hard at her eyes and sighs, dropping her hands from her face, “It’s not an if,” she admits with a sigh, “I’ll call first thing in the morning, see if they’ll help.”

“You send them this,” Kara says tapping on the folder on the desk, “and they’ll come.”

Alex runs her hands over her face and sighs, looking at Kara, “Alright. I think we’re done for tonight.” Alex nods, almost to herself and adds, “Let’s try to get some sleep.”

Kara stretches her arms out over her head and with a sigh lets them drop, “I can agree to that. Do you think you’ll be able to sleep?”

“I think I’m going to try,” Alex admits as she stands up from behind her desk.

“Can’t ask for more than that,” Kara sighs as she follows Alex from the office. They head up the stairs in silence but when they reach the top Alex stops and turns to face Kara.

“Are you sure Lena is ok with you helping out with all this?” Alex asks and Kara can see the concern in her eyes.

Kara sighs but answers in a low voice, “I know she’d prefer it if I took some actual time off from work for a change, but I also know that she’d want me to help.” When Alex shoots her a skeptical look she chuckles and replies, “I’m serious. Lena understands a lot more about all this than most people give her credit for.”

“As long as you’re sure,” Alex says, then smiles slightly, “I’d hate to have an angry sister-in-law after me in the morning.”

“Get some sleep,” Kara smiles and watches as Alex heads down the hallway to her room. With another sigh Kara walks in to the little bathroom, quickly changing before heading into her old bedroom. She quietly slides back in to bed next to Lena, who automatically rolls over to face her, laying her head on Kara’s shoulder. It has yet to stop amazing Kara how perfectly they fit together, and she takes a deep breath, breathing in the scent of her wife.

“How bad is it?” Lena asks in a whisper, not sounding completely awake.

Kara could easily lie to her, tell her that it’s not as bad as it is, that there’s nothing to worry about. In the years that Kara has worked for the FBI, the underlying fear that a case would follow her home had bothered her. Now here she was, laying in her old bed, in her old house, about as far away from her job as she could be and now, she was faced with a killer who could be a neighbor for all she knew. Was that a burden she wanted to put on her wife?

Kara knew she couldn’t keep things from Lena, she never has been able to. Even holidays and birthdays were nearly wrecked by her inability to keep a secret from her love.

She leans down and places a soft kiss on Lena’s forehead, feeling Lena’s arm tighten around her in response, Kara answers, “It’s bad.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Family breakfast after a long night and then, it's time to call in some backup.

_Sand and hot air wiped against her face and neck stinging her skin and with a sigh Alex pulls the head scarf around her neck up to cover her mouth and nose and slips the goggles from her helmet down to cover her eyes._

_“Well,” she hears the man beside her say loudly through his own protection, “you were the one who was asking for a breeze.”_

_“Don’t be a smartass,” Alex replies but was smiling under her wrap. They’d been back at the forward operating base, or FOB, for a few days now and the heat had been brutal the entire time. It was almost enough to make Alex miss the frigid temperatures up in the mountains they’d only recently left behind._

_He chuckles and looks out over what passes for an airfield at the FOB. The sandstorm had kicked up out of nowhere and everyone who was smart enough had taken shelter inside the hodgepodge of buildings that made up the base. Unfortunately for the two of them they had drawn watch duty and were stuck outside. They stood back to back in order to keep eyes on as much as they could, which right now wasn’t much with the sand blowing._

_“How long do you think this is going to last?” her companion shouts the question._

_“Hopefully not long,” Alex answers over the wound of the wind, “I’ve already got sand places it should never be.”_

_She can feel him chuckle against her back and laughs a little herself._

_“How exactly did we get stuck with watch during the sandstorm?” he asks._

_“Probably shouldn’t have told the Major you thought his wife was hot,” Alex chuckles in answer._

_“It was a compliment!” he argues back._

_“Guess he didn’t see it that way,” Alex shots back as something catches her eye through the blowing sand. “Hey, heads up. Something’s moving out there.”_

_“Yea,” he snickers, “the sand.”_

_“No smartass,” she says as she lifts her rifle to her shoulder and looks down the sight. Through the sand and the wind, she can just make out what looks like a small, compact car coming towards them._

_“Heads up,” Alex says, talking into her radio, “We’ve got a vehicle coming towards the gate.”_

_“Copy that,” the voice replies._

_Before she can say or do anything else a large explosion shakes the ground under them, and she is knocked off her feet._

Alex slowly blinks as consciousness comes back to her and she looks around the room. She can still feel the hot sand on her face and the pressure the goggles made around her eyes. Lifting her head, she looks around the room and realizes she’s in bed at home, her home. It doesn’t make sense in her head, she can still feel the weight of her rifle against her chest and arms and feel the heat on her face.

Letting her head flop back on to the pillow she takes a deep breath and rubs her eyes with her left hand. Ten years after the fact and she still had dreams that felt as real as they had the day, she lived them. At least that one hadn’t been bad, some of them woke her in a cold sweat, shaking from the memories.

She took a deep breath and when she did, she noticed she smelled something. At first, she was alarmed because it was clearly the smell of heat but after taking a second-deep breath in, this time through her nose, she realized there was something to smell there. Eggs. Breathing it in one more time she noticed a hint of bacon in the air as well.

Besides the smells in the air Alex hears something that certainly had no place in a war zone, the laughter of a small child. She could hear Emma giggling from downstairs and the sounds of her playing with her mothers.

“Thank god for Lena,” Alex mumbles to herself before she rolls out of bed and grabs her robe, sliding it on with ease. Alex rarely had time to cook herself breakfast, usually settling for a bowl of cereal or just a breakfast bar, but it seemed that having her sister-in-law here also meant a hot breakfast.

Alex hesitates, ready to head downstairs, and decides she should take a shower and get dressed before heading down, not really knowing what the day is going to bring.

Fifteen minutes later Alex walks down the stairs dressed in her uniform, button down shirt still open over top her white t-shirt, and nearly runs in to Emma as she goes running by giggling, followed closely by Kara.

“At least someone is having a good morning,” Alex says with a chuckle as Kara stops in front of her to catch her breath.

“Somedays she wears me out,” Kara huffs out a laugh. Before Alex answers Emma comes running back and Kara kneels to catch her, lifting her up in to the air as the girl laughs louder.

“I see now why you’re in such good shape,” Alex chuckles as they both walk in to the kitchen, Kara still holding Emma as the girl continues to giggle.

“I hope she didn’t wake you,” Lena says from her spot in front of the stove.

“Not at all,” Alex answers with a slight shake of her head, “but I will say that waking up to the smell of food is a pleasant change from my normal.”

Lena chuckles softly and says, “I thought after the late night you two had a good breakfast was in order.”

“I married a genius,” Kara says as she starts tickling Emma causing the girl to squeal even more as Kara sets her back down on the floor.

“Thank god you married someone that can cook,” Alex teases, “because we all know you’d be dead by now if you had to cook for yourself.”

“One time!” Kara play yells with a laugh.

“Want to grab some plates love?” Lena asks as she moves the eggs from the pan to a large serving plate.

“I’ve got them,” Alex offers as she sees that Emma has wrapped herself around her mother’s legs.

“Monkey, you’re going to have to let me move,” Kara says with a smile as she looks down at her daughter.

“But I’m a monkey,” Emma says with another giggle. “I can’t let go.”

“How about I make you a deal,” Alex hears Kara say as she opens the cabinet next to the stove, “You ride on my back and I’ll help Aunt Lexie get the table ready for breakfast.”

“Deal!” Emma squeals and lets go of Kara’s leg and in to her mother’s arms. Kara easily swings the little girl around so she rests on her back, lacing her arms around Kara’s neck and wrapping her legs on Kara’s hips.

“Alright,” Kara smiles as she moves to get silverware out of the drawer, there’s a knock on the door. “We’ll get it,” Kara offers being the closest to the door and the only one technically without her hands full.

“Alright Monkey,” Kara says as they walk to the front door, “hold on tight.” Kara had felt Emma start to slip some so she put her arm under the girl to support her. _She’s going to be too big for this soon_, Kara thinks with a sad sigh.

Pushing the thought out of her mind for now she swings open the front door and is greeted by a very tired looking Maggie.

“Hey, good morning Maggie,” Kara says with a smile as Emma tries to look over her shoulder.

“Morning,” Maggie says returning the smile as she watches Kara try to keep the small child on her back from knocking her over. “I hate to interrupt so early but is the Sheriff here?”

“Yea, she’s in the kitchen,” Kara answers as Emma keeps trying to look.

“Who is it momma?” Emma asks and Kara sighs, takes a step back, swinging Emma around to sit on her hip, wrapping her arm around her daughter to hopefully keep her in place.

“It’s Aunt Lexie’s friend from work,” Kara answers the girl, “Come on in Maggie, we were just about to have breakfast.”

“I won’t be long,” Maggie says, and Kara realizes that she’s holding a manila envelop in her hands. Maggie closes the door behind herself and follows Kara in to the kitchen.

“Alex, Maggie’s here,” Kara announces as they walk in.

“You’re up early, for you at least,” Alex smirks as she finishes putting the last plate on the table.

“Found something I thought you’d want to see,” Maggie answers holding the folder up, “but it can wait until after breakfast. I can meet you at the station.”

“Have you had breakfast yet?” Lena asks before Alex has a chance to answer.

“Um, no,” Maggie says as she glances down at her watch.

“Then take your coat off,” Lena says, “Kara grab another plate, will you?”

With a nod Kara sits Emma down on a chair at the table, the child having gone quiet as she investigates the newcomer and opens the cabinet.

“That’s ok, I don’t want to interrupt a family meal.” Maggie says glancing at the child giving her a strange look.

“Nonsense,” Lena waves a hand smiling, “I made more than enough.”

“Might as well not argue,” Alex answers with a chuckle as she pours two cups of coffee. “She always wins.”

With a sigh and an unsure look to Alex, Maggie shrugs out of her coat and hangs it over the back of one of the kitchen chairs and sits down, setting the envelop down on the corner of the table.

“See, the longer you’re here the smarter you get,” Alex smiles as she sets one of the coffee cups down in front of Maggie. “We can talk shop after we eat,” Alex adds as she sits next to Maggie at the small table.

“I’m not sure your niece likes me,” Maggie mumbles to Alex as she takes a sip from her cup.

Alex laughs and looks at Emma, who is still giving Maggie a very serious look.

“Oh, that,” Alex laughs and sets her cup on the table, “She’s trying to profile you, figure out who you are. Takes after her mother.”

“I heard that,” Kara says with a smile as she sets the extra plate down in front of Maggie.

“But you didn’t correct me,” Alex answers.

“Emma be polite,” Lena scolds gently as she walks to the table carrying a plate of eggs and one of bacon.

Like the flip of a switch Emma’s face softens and she sighs, “Good morning Miss Maggie.”

Alex can hear Kara chuckle from across the kitchen, where she had gone back to get the plate with pancakes on it.

“Um, good morning Emma,” Maggie says a bit unsure how to interact with the child. When Alex chuckles Maggie throws her a look, “Give me a break. I don’t usually interact with tiny humans.”

“She’s basically harmless,” Kara assures as she sets the plate down in front of them. “out grew the biting thing two years ago,’ Kara adds as she puts a pancake on Emma’s plate.

“She just being an ass,” Alex assures then looks over to Emma, “You don’t bite do you?”

“I bite pancakes,” Emma says with a big smile as she picks up her pancake and take a big bite out of it.

“Use your fork, monkey,” Kara says as she sits next to Emma, Lena on her other side. Emma drops her pancake back on to her plate but smiles with puffy cheeks at Alex and Maggie.

Maggie chuckles and they all make to filling their plates in relative silence, just the occasional asking to pass this or that.

“Aunt Lexie, can we go play in the snow after pancakes?” Emma asks as she pops a bite of scrambled eggs in her mouth.

Maggie chuckles at the nickname and Alex elbows her slightly before answering, “I have to do a little work this morning, but maybe this afternoon we can do some playing in the snow.”

“How about you and I take Scout out to play after we eat?” Lena offers, knowing that Kara will more than likely be involved in whatever Alex will be doing.

Kara gives her wife a thankful smile then says to Alex, “I haven’t emailed Henshaw yet, I figured I’d wait until you called.”

“After breakfast I was going to call,” Alex says taking another bite of her breakfast.

“If you want, I can give you a direct line to the communication liaison,” Kara offers after taking a drink of her coffee. “She handles all the incoming cases before the team gets them.”

“I hate to jump the line, but time might be an issue,” Alex resigns with a sigh.

“You shouldn’t cut in line Aunt Lexie,” Emma advises from her spot at the table. “Michelle cut in line the other day and Ms. Cynthia made her go all the way to the back.”

Alex chuckles, “I better not cut in line then.” She adds a wink to her sister who smiles and shakes her head. Alex stabs the last few pieces of pancakes with her fork and finishes off her breakfast. Picking up her now empty coffee cup Alex stands up and grabs her plate, “I’m going to refill the coffee. Anyone else need any?”

“I will definitely be needing seconds,” Kara confirms as she finishes off her cup and stands to follow her sister. Alex puts her plate in the sink as Kara pulls the pot of coffee out of the maker and pours herself a cup. “Maggie usually make early morning visits?” Kara asks in a low voice.

“Not typically,” Alex answers, equally low and glances over her shoulder at the others still at the table. “Doesn’t look like she’s slept though.”

“Think the envelope is related to the case?” Kara asks with a lift of an eyebrow.

“Good chance,” Alex answers.

“Hmm,” Kara hums her agreement, “Office?”

“Office,” Alex confirms as she replaces the pot and turns back to the table.

“Are you ok for a few minutes hon?” Kara asks walking up behind Emma’s chair. “I’m just going to talk to Alex and Maggie in the office. Be back to help you clean up though.”

“I think we can manage a few minutes,” Lena says with a small smile, “just don’t be too long.”

“I couldn’t imagine leaving my queen and princess waiting,” Kara smiles as she leans over and kisses Lena briefly on the lips, then leans down and places a soft kiss on the top of Emma’s head.

Maggie quickly stands up, sliding the envelope she’d brought with her as she went. She stops before walking away and looks to Lena, “I’ll, um, I’ll be back to get that,” she says gesturing to her plate on the table.

“Leave it,” Lena waves her off with a smile. “Nothing we can’t handle right?” she says nodding to Emma who gives her a quick nod in return.

“Thanks,” Maggie says then makes to follow the other two to the office. She chuckles as Scout looks quickly between the young girl at the table and Alex’s retreating form, as though he was unsure which one, he wanted to follow.

Maggie made it to the door of the office as Alex reached her desk, setting her coffee cup down on the corner and turning to face her.

“You know, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you be so awkward,” Alex chuckles.

“Very funny,” Maggie mumbles, closing the door quietly behind her. She wasn’t sure how much Lena had heard about the case, between Alex and Kara she figured the woman knew something, but she didn’t think it was an appropriate conversation for the kid to overhear. “The whole family dynamic thing is not my area of expertise.”

“Don’t let the little one fool you,” Kara says with a grin, “she’s not all bad.”

“Oh, it’s not that,” Maggie tries to explain, “it’s just, the whole happily family thing, just not used to it. The kid is great,” she adds quickly, leaning against the door behind her.

Alex chuckles before deciding to change the subject, not wanting to see her friend squirm too much, “You look like you’ve barely slept. What’s going on Maggie?”

Maggie takes a deep breath, her hands still behind her and answers, “I did sleep, some.”

“You stayed at the bar until close again?” Alex guessed.

“Well after actually,” Maggie mumbles and earns a curious look from the Danvers siblings. She clears her throat and pushes away from the door. “Not the point. After you guys left I started thinking and I reached out to an old buddy of mine from the Navy. He’s out now but works in the Pentagon in intel and he owed me a favor, well, multiple actually. Anyway, I called him last night and asked him to look in to the case we worked together in Afghanistan.”

She holds the envelope up and continues, “He found it and sent it to me. I printed it out this morning and figured you’d want to see it.”

“You got the case files from both of them?” Alex asks, sounding surprised.

“I got the case files for all of them,” Maggie corrects.

“How many were there?” Kara asks.

“I worked one more after you left,” Maggie answers handing the envelope over to Alex, “and there was another one after that, I wasn’t there for that one.”

“Four?” Kara asks, her turn to sound surprised. Alex opened the envelope and starts rifling through the reports.

Maggie nods, “Yea, four and they were all marked.”

“Ten and nine?” Kara says, wondering if their guess of the killer counting down was right.

“No,” Alex answers, holding up a picture of a close up of markings behind the victim’s ear, “thirteen and fourteen.”

“Damn,” Kara says as she takes the picture to exam further, “so much for that theory.”

“These were over a three-year period,” Alex mumbles as she continues to scan the file.

“The cuts are different too,” Kara adds as she studies the next picture Alex hands her. “Not as clean and the pattern isn’t the same.”

“You think it’s not the same person?” Maggie ask skeptically.

“I’m not saying that,” Kara answers, looking up to address Maggie, “I think it is. It just shows how he’s evolved over time. He pays better attention to details and has perfected what he does.”

“You make it sound like an art,” Maggie says with a sigh.

“To him it is,” Kara frowns, then to Alex she says, “If you’re going to call the team in, we should set up a spot in the station where we can lay this all out, get an overview of everything.”

“You’re calling the Feds in?” Maggie asks surprised.

“I think, considering all this,” Alex says holding up the files, “we’re going to need some help.”

“Probably right,” Maggie agrees as she plops down in to one of the chairs across from Alex’s desk, fatigue starting to set in.

“No point in waiting either,” Alex mumbles as she hands the file to Kara and heads around her desk and picks up the house phone there.

“Do you have this electronically?” Kara asks Maggie as she sits in the chair beside the tired paramedic.

“Yea, saved in my cloud,” Maggie answers, pulling her phone out, “I’ll send it to you.”

“Send it to Alex,” Kara shakes her head, “she’ll need to send it all to the communication liaison. By the way, here’s her number,” Kara says handing her phone over to Alex.

Alex takes the phone as she opens her laptop to pull up the files of the case and open her email.

“Why did I ever think growing up was going to be fun?” she asks as she lifts the receiver and dials in the number.

“Damn if I know,” Maggie answers with a grin as she slides down in the chair, shoving her phone back in her pocket after sending the email to Alex.

“It has its moments,” Kara mumbles as she continues to look through the file.

The phone only rings twice before it is answered, “Behavioral Analysis Unit, Special Agent Arias.”

“Good morning Agent Arias,” Alex starts feeling a little weary. “This is Sheriff Alex Danvers from Bella Rosa, Montana. I have a case here and I’d like to ask your team for some help with it.”

“Alright, Sheriff Danvers,” the agent says, and Alex can hear the sound of papers moving, “Can you send me the files you have so I can take a look, and give me an idea what you have?”

“Sure,” Alex says and types in the email address as Agent Arias recites it. “We have two bodies here, the last one was found early this morning. Both bodies have very distinct marks and, at least the first one showed high levels of hemlock. We’re still waiting on the second autopsy and toxic screen.”

“I see,” the agent says, and Alex can tell she’s looking over the case notes and pictures, “I see what you mean by the markings. I’ll present it to the team.”

“Thank you, Agent Arias, I greatly appreciate that,” Alex says letting out a small breath.

“You’re welcome,” the agent says, “and Sheriff Danvers, can I ask a question?”

“Absolutely,” Alex says, prepared to answer any question about the case.

“Do you happen to have a sister?” the agent asks, and Alex swears she can hear a smile, “Name Kara?”

“I do, yes,” Alex says giving Kara a surprised look.

“I’m going to guess that’s how you got my direct number,” Agent Arias says with a small chuckle.

“You’d be a good guesser ma’am,” Alex says with a smile of her own.

“Can I speak to her?” she asks, sounding just a bit more serious now.

“Of course,” Alex says and hands the phone over the desk to her sister, “She wants to talk to you.”

“Busted,” Maggie chuckles as she stretches her legs out in front of her.

“When did we get another sibling?” Kara asks Alex as she takes the phone and puts it to her ear, “Danvers,” she says in to it quickly.

“I’m not sure if she’s insulting me or complimenting me,” Maggie says looking to Alex who only smiles and shrugs in response.

“Absolutely,” Kara says to the phone, “I’ll make sure…got it…thanks.”

“That was short,” Alex says as Kara hands her the phone back.

“She started out by reminding me that I was supposed to be on vacation,” Kara sighs, “Then she asked if I thought it was bad, which I do, then asked me to help make sure things are ready for when the team gets here.”

“So, they’re definitely coming then?” Alex asks, sitting back in her chair.

“Yep,” Kara says, pooping the p at the end, “She’s going to present it to the team now and they’ll be in the air within half an hour. Flight’s about six hours or so, depends on the weather.”

Alex blows out a big breath before sitting forward in her chair and leaning her elbows on her desk, “I’m going to go head to the station and start getting things set up. You should spend some time with Lena and Emma because I have no idea how things are going to go once that team gets here,” Alex says looking at Kara.

“We’re going to be busy,” Kara agrees with a nod.

“I figured,” Alex says then looks at Maggie, who looks nearly asleep, “You need to go home and get some sleep. I’m going to need you on this one, you worked one of these cases without me.”

“Luckily for you I don’t go in to work until six tonight,” Maggie says and with a grunt hauls herself out of her chair and to her feet.

Alex stands up and comes around the side of her desk, “Just get some sleep, please.”

“She out ranks me once in our lives and now she thinks she always does,” Maggie says shooting a smile to Kara in the chair behind her.

“You’re talking to her younger sister,” Kara says also standing up, grabbing her coffee cup from the desk, “she’s outranked me since birth.”

“Only since yours,” Alex adds with a grin, then slaps Maggie on the shoulder, “I’ll walk you out.”

“I’m sure I’ll be seeing you soon,” Kara says to Maggie as she shakes her hand then turns towards the kitchen and heads off.

“So, spill,” Alex says as they walk the short distance to the front door.

“About?” Maggie asks.

“Lucy,” Alex says and when Maggie starts to object, she holds a hand up and continues, “You said you were at the bar way past closing time, so spill.”

“We talked, for a while,” Maggie admits with a shrug. “Nothing else.”

“And yet you still didn’t sleep,” Alex says, not asks.

“Left Red’s about four, walked around for a bit and got home around five,” Maggie says in a huff. “Laid down for about an hour and that’s when my guy in D.C. called and said he’d sent me the files.”

“You walked around for an hour?” Alex asks with a raised eyebrow. Maggie doesn’t answer and Alex adds, “You still having trouble getting comfortable?”

“Some days are better than others,” Maggie answers with a shrug and pats her left thigh,” Damn leg still likes to give me a hard time at night. I’ll work it out.”

“You know you don’t have to alone,” Alex says, lowering her voice. “You clearly know where to find me.”

Maggie looks down and nods, “I know, and I appreciate that.”

“Go get some sleep,” Alex says as Maggie opens the door. “I’ll call you later when the feds get here.”

“Sounds fun,” Maggie says as she steps outside, her breath instantly turning in to a cloud around her. “Enjoy the family.” With that Maggie heads down the drive way to where her truck in parked along the curb.

With a sigh Alex closes the door and heads back in to the kitchen, stopping in the doorway to take in the scene in front of her.

Kara and Lena stand side by side at the kitchen sink, the former washing dishes the latter rinses them off, and Emma sits on the counter next to Lena and carefully dries off each dish as Lena hands it to her. Granted she isn’t doing the best job of drying, but the little girl is carefully placing each dish in the wire drying rack next to her.

The two older girls were talking quietly to each other and smiling, watching Emma concentrate on her task, her little tongue sticking out the corner of her mouth as she focuses. As Emma sets the plate, she was just drying in the drying rack Kara leans over and gently kisses Lena’s cheek, causing the older woman’s smile to widen.

It was simple but perfect and Alex couldn’t help but smile.

**

Two hours later Alex and Kara, along with Lena, walked in to the basement of the County Building. Wally was still in his office, so they waited outside in the hallway.

“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to the smell of these kinds of places,” Lena mumbles after a few moments had passed. “It’s so sad.”

“It smells sad?” Alex asks, raising an eyebrow and throwing a look at Kara, who stood beside her wife.

“It smells like that stuff they use to preserve dead bodies,” Lena explains with a crinkle of her nose.

“Formaldehyde?” Alex asks with a grin.

“Yes, exactly! That,” Lena says with a huff. “It reminds me of death, and that’s just sad.”

“I guess that’s fair,” Alex says with a sigh as Lena rests her head on Kara’s shoulder. Kara leans her head over and places it against her wife’s.

Alex takes a moment to watch them. It is so easy for her to forget that Lena’s life was not always as calm and peaceful as it has been since she moved here from Ireland years ago. Death had been a prominent part of her life until she had been moved from her father’s custody and sent to live with her aunt in the states.

The door to the small office Wally has called his own for decades now opens and the older man walks in to the hallway. Looking around he seems a bit surprised to see so many people waiting for him.

“I hope this doesn’t mean I’m in some kind of trouble, with both the Sheriff and a Federal Agent waiting around for me,” Wally says with a wide smile, “and Lena, it is a pleasure to see you again.” Wally reaches out and takes Lena’s hand, giving her a friendly kiss on the cheek.

“Wally,” Lena smiles, the conversation from early gone from her face, “I can’t believe how long it’s been. I love your bowtie.”

“Charming an old man,” Wally says with a wink to Kara, “I didn’t realize you’d be joining us this morning.”

“Lena has some background in this area,” Alex explains as they head down the short hallway to the exam area, “I thought she might be able to give us a little bit of insight.”

“I had no idea,” Wally says but doesn’t give it another thought as he pushes open the door to the exam room.

“I’m just full of surprises,” Lena says with a grin, as she follows behind Alex.

Alex and Kara follow Wally to the single exam table in the room while Lena decides to hang back, leaning against the small desk against the wall.

“Same COD as the last one?” Alex asks as Wally pulls on a pair of rubber gloves.

“The tox results just came back, that’s who I was talking to on the phone,” Wally answers, “and yes. Just like the last victim this girl had enough Hemlock in her blood to kill someone twice her size.”

“So the marks on her neck, they were all made premortem,” Kara says as she leans closer to take a look at the bruises.

“Yes. They would have been enough to knock her out but not kill her,” Wally says.

“Does she have the same mark on her side?” Alex asks Wally who nods and hands over a pair of gloves for her. She puts them on and lifts the side of the sheet to reveal the woman’s side.

Kara steps away from examining the neck and comes to stand next to her sister, both girls neck bent to observe the marks on the victim’s side.

“Mine,” Kara says reading the writing, “and he etches it in to the skin.”

“May I take a look?” Lena speaks up from behind the sisters. Alex jumps a little, having not heard her approach.

“Sure,” Alex says as she takes a step back, letting Lena have a clearer view.

“Have you been able to get any positive IDs or either of them?” Kara asks as Lena looks over the wound on the victim’s side.

“Nothing yet,” Wally says with a sad shake of his head. “The only thing I can tell you for sure is that both girls died the same way and I’d imagine by the same person. They’re damn near carbon copies of each other.”

“Great, and with nearly zero evidence we’re not doing so well,” Alex says trying to keep the frustration out of her voice. She looks back at Lena, who has moved from looking at the side of the victim to looking at her face.

“What do you think?” Alex asks after a moment of watching her.

“He’s been at this for a long time,” Lena says in a low voice, “there isn’t the slightest hint of hesitation on any of the cuts, and here,” she says pointing to the marks on the neck, “even these are done in such a way that they left nearly perfectly straight lines.” Lena looks at the face of the woman and says in a sad voice, “She suffered a great deal.”

Alex looks at Kara, who was standing opposite Lena, had a worried look on her face as she watched her wife.

Lena looks up and meets Alex’s eyes, “He’s an artist, or at least he thinks he is. He’s not likely to make any big obvious mistakes. You’ll catch him in the finer details.”

“Finer details,” Alex says rubbing her eyes with her hand, “like what?”

“Well,” Lena says looking back to the body, “he’s using very fine bladed tools, something like a well-kept scalpel, not something like you’d find in the hospital. Not to mention something like hemlock isn’t exactly common and he’d have to of ordered it, I can’t imagine it’d grow around here well.”

“How the hell am I supposed to track something like that?” Alex asks with a heavy sigh. “That’s not something we have the resources for out here.”

“We’ll find it,” Kara says, speaking up, “one of the members of the BAU team is a tech expert and he’s amazing at tracking pretty much everything.”

“Alright,” Alex says with a sigh, “Wally is there anything else?”

“No, not right now,” Wally says in a low voice, “I’ll let you know if we get anything on their names.”

“Thanks,” Alex says then looks to Kara, who still looks worried but less so, “We should head over to the station and get things set up for your team.”

“Yea,” Kara says slowly, “thank Wally for everything.”

“Wish I had more,” Wally says then smiles and looks at Kara and Alex in turn, “It’s great to see the two of you working together on this. I never imagined I’d get to see it.”

“That makes two of us,” Kara says with a chuckle.

The small group makes their way out of the Coroner’s Office and stands on the sidewalk outside, not saying much at first.

Finally, Lena breaks the silence, “I’m going back to the house so your mother can get to work.” They’d asked Eliza to watch Emma long enough for Lena to come with them.

“Alright love,” Kara says pull her wife to her and kissing her temple, “I’ll be home as soon as we get things set up.”

“I’ll make sure lunch is ready,” Lena says, her voice low.

“I love you,” Kara says, kissing her temple again.

“Love you too,” Lena says with a smile as she kisses Kara on the lips.

“Thanks for coming with,” Alex adds with a nod as Lena heads to the rental car parked along the curb. They watch in silence as she drives away and Kara sighs loudly.

“Sorry for asking her to take a look,” Alex starts but Kara lifts a hand to stop her.

“She wanted to help,” Kara answers, the worried expression back on her face, “I just hope it wasn’t too hard on her.”

“She seemed like she was alright,” Alex offers as the pair make their way across the street to the Sheriff’s Station. “She’s got to be one of the strongest people I know.”

“That she is,” Kara agrees with a nod. “She’s been through hell several times already. I was just hoping to keep her from anymore of it.”

“Hey,” Alex says taking Kara by the elbow as they stepped on to the sidewalk in front of the station. “The life you and Lena has is the farthest thing from all this. You keep her safe and she feels loved. You two are almost sickening sweet at times,” Alex says with a chuckle and continues,” You guys are happy, every day. You have any idea how rare that is? How many people try for that, wish for that and never get it?”

Kara takes a deep breath and lets it out,” I just hope you’re right.”

“I’m the oldest,” Alex chuckles, “I’m always right.”

Kara snorts a laugh but follows her sister in to the station to start what will no doubt be a long morning of work.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The BAU arrives in Bella Rosa and Alex gets to meet the team, including Agent Arias. More clues and some playful banter along the way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just realized this morning that I didn't post this yesterday. Sorry guys!!!!

“I didn’t realize how much room crime scene pictures can take up,” Alex says as she finishes pinning the last picture to the large cork board, they had wheeled in to the only conference room in the station over three hours ago. They had managed to find two in the basement of the station, hidden well in the old storage.

“And these are just the ones that are the most relevant,” Kara says as she looks at the boards. “We’d probably need two more if we posted all of them.”

“I do get it though,” Alex says crossing her arms over her chest and leaning against long table in the room. “Being able to see it all laid out in front of you is helpful.”

“Getting the bigger picture,” Kara chuckles. “Now that we have them laid out and in chorological order, we might be bale to get a better idea of who this guy is.”

“You’re sure it’s a guy?” Alex asks with a look to Kara.

“Statistically speaking, most serial killers are male,” Kara answers.

“Good to know,” Alex mumbles as she rubs the back of her neck, “I’m tired already. How long have we been at this anyway?”

“A while,” Kara answers then her face falls and she say, “Shit! I told Lena I’d be back home for lunch.” She grabs for her phone, which usually resides in her back pocket, only to find that it’s not there. “I think I left my phone on your desk.”

Kara heads out of the conference room, located in the very back of the station, and Alex follows, chuckling slightly.

“You only think it’s funny because you want to see my wife kick my ass,” Kara mutters as she opens the door to Alex’s office and steps in.

“No,” Alex says with a shake of her head, “I think it’s funny because Lena and Emma just walked in.”

Kara shoves her phone in her pocket, not even bothering to check it, and walks past Alex.

“I am so sorry,” Kara says as she walks past the random desk sat around the station for the Deputies and through the waist high railing that separates the two areas. Lena stands with Emma next to her, the little girl’s hand firmly in Lena’s right and a bag in Lena’s left.

“It’s alright,” Lena says with a smile. “I figured when you didn’t make it home for lunch that you two got carried away working and that we should bring you some lunch.”

“Aunt Lexie, is this where you work?” Emma asks, eyes big as she takes in the entire station around her as Alex walks over to greet them.

“It is,” Alex answers with a big smile, “Do you want to see my office?” Alex offers, glancing at Lena who nods her head and releases the little girl’s hand. Alex pushes open the small gate and smiles as Emma walks through, looking all around her, and takes Alex’s hand.

“We’ll be in my office,” Alex say to the pair and her and the little one walk off together.

Kara watches them walk away then turns back to Lena, “I am really sorry baby. We finished getting the conference room cleaned out, then moved a couple of cork boards in and decided to get the pictures of the crime scenes ordered and put up.”

“Love,” Lena says, gently placing her finger on Kara’s lips to stop the blonde from talking, “I meant it when I said it was alright. I’m not upset.”

“You sure?” Kara asks in a mumble, trying to talk around the finger against her lips.

“You’re adorable, you know?” Lena says smiling widely.

Kara’s smile grows under her finger and Lena lets it drop, taking a step closer to her wife. Kara leans down and kisses Lena, lingering a moment to reveal in the tenderness that is her wife, she rests her hands gently on Lena’s hips.

Kara breaths a sigh of relief, Lena has always managed to make her feel relaxed and at peace, despite whatever else was going on around them.

“Are you alright?” Kara asks, staying close, “after this morning?”

“I am,” Lena says in a breath, eyes still closed from their kiss.

Kara pulls back enough to look Lena in the eyes and gives her wife a skeptical look.

Lena sighs and admits, “Alright, it wasn’t easy but overall I think I’m ok. Getting to go home to Emma makes it easier to forget.”

“It is hard to think about anything bad when she lights up a room,” Kara agrees with a smile then adds, “just like her mother.”

“Ten years together and you’re still a flirt,” Lena giggles as Kara pulls her in for a tight hug.

“Only with you my love”, Kara says, wrapping her arms around Lena, “and for the rest of my life.”

The sound of someone clearing their voice and saying, “I hope we’re not interrupting.”

Recognizing the voice immediately Kara releases Lena and takes a step back, face turning a bit red, “Agent Henshaw. We weren’t expecting you for another two hours.”

“Clearly,” the man says with a smile. “Private jet cuts down on travel time.”

“Right,” Kara says, cursing to herself, “Agent Henshaw, this is my wife, Lena. Lena, Agent Henshaw.”

“It’s a pleasure,” Henshaw says shaking Lena’s offered hand, “I’ve heard a great deal about you already.”

“Hopefully all good,” Lena smiles at the man, noticing the group of people with him, “I see you’ve brought the whole team.”

“I have,” Henshaw agrees, “Do you have a place for us?” this he asks of Kara.

“We set up the conference room in the back,” Kara answers with a nod, “the Sheriff is in her office.”

No sooner had those words left her mouth then Alex came out of her office, pushing her desk chair with Emma seated on it. They were both making ‘zooming’ noises Kara couldn’t help but chuckle at the timing of it all.

They zoom around one desk, which brings them to facing the front of the station and Alex stops short, seeing the group of people standing before her.

“Um, Emma, we’re going to have to hit pause for a few minutes,” Alex says squatting down to be on the same level as the girl, “I’ve got to go say hi to my friends over there.”

“Ok,” the little girl says, climbing down off the chair and taking her aunt’s hand.

“Morning,” Alex says as they approach the small railing and she pushes it open, letting Emma walk through and to Lena’s side. The girl never taking her eyes off the newcomers.

“Afternoon,” Kara mumbles under her breath to Alex.

Alex just shrugs, smiles and says, “It’s always morning somewhere in the world. Sorry about that, I was babysitting.” Alex reaches out her hand to the older man standing in front of her. If she had to guess she’d say he would be about the same age her father would have been. His hair remained a dark black with no hints of greying but the lines around his eyes gave away more than just his age.

“No need to apologize Sheriff,” Henshaw says taking her offered hand and shaking it. “Agent Danvers here was just telling us we could set up in your conference room.”

“Absolutely,” Alex says taking a step backwards, “I can show you where it is then we can do introductions all around and get to work.”

“Works for us,” Henshaw says as he and his small group follow Alex towards the back of the station.

“I should probably go with. At least for right now,” Kara says in an apologetic voice to Lena as the last of the team passes through the gate. “I’ll try to be home before dinner.”

“I’m sure we can entertain ourselves until then,” Lena promises, resting her hands on Emma’s shoulders.

Kara smiles at her wife then squats down to talk to Emma, “Alright monkey, you be good for mommy ok? I’ll see you soon.”

“Do you have to work?” Emma asked in that way only children can that cuts right through you and makes you feel guilt.

“Just for a little bit,” Kara promises, feeling her eyes water some, “but I’ll be home before too long.”

“Can we build a snowman then?” Emma asks with a small smile.

“You want to make a snowman?” Kara asks with a matching smile, “I think we can do that.”

Emma throws her arms around Kara’s neck and hugs her tight, Kara instinctually wrapping her arms around the girl in a tight hug.

“Alright, little one,” Lena says after a moment, “Let’s let momma work and we’ll go home and play with Scout.”

Emma gasps, “Oh Scout, I bet he misses us since we’ve been gone.”

“I’m sure he has,” Kara chuckles standing back up.

“That dog is going to sleep for a month when we leave,” Lena laughs then kisses Kara before handing her the small bag she’d brought with her to the station, “Make sure you eat.” Then with that her and Emma head out of the station with Emma in tow, chatting about how much she loves Scout and that they should play with him as soon as they get home.

Kara chuckles again then turns toward the conference room with a sigh. Dropping the bag with lunch in it off at Alex’s desk, she gets there just in time for the introductions to begin and she quietly closes the door behind her.

“Sheriff Danvers let me introduce you to my team,” Agent Henshaw starts. He points to the man standing to his left, he was tall and bald, “This is Special Agent James Olsen.”

He then points to another male agent who was in the process of setting up two laptops on the far side of the conference table, “Special Agent Querl Dox who’s our tech specialist.” The young man looked up from his computers and smiles shyly. If Alex had a guess, the young agent couldn’t be much older then twenty-five.

“You’ve already spoken to Special Agent Sam Arias, our communications liaisons and one of the best profilers I’ve ever worked with,” Henshaw says gesturing to the woman that stands to Alex’s left. Her phone conversation had done nothing to prepare Alex for the woman now standing next to her. Her long dark hair was pulled back in to a ponytail despite the cold and her brown eyes seemed to shine in a way Alex’s never did.

“It’s nice to put a face to the name,” Alex says with a smile, shaking the agent’s hand. She would have liked to greet all the agents that way but since they were all spread around the room that wasn’t possible right now.

“Likewise,” Sam says with a smile. “I gave the team a brief overview of what you’re dealing back in Quantico but it’s always better coming from the source.”

Alex sighs and says, “I’m not entirely sure what to make of it but we’ve found two bodies in the last two days, both with the same marks.” She walks over to the first corkboard, the one with pictures from the bodies found here, “Jane Doe one was found first right off the highway in a heavily wooded area down an embankment. No obvious injuries save for the marks on her extremities.”

“Trace evidence at the scene?” Olsen asks, looking at a print out Alex had left on the table.

“Nothing that we were able to find,” Alex shakes her head. “No footsteps but it snowed that night so it’s possible they were covered. Other than her we didn’t find anything on the scene.”

“Jane Doe two was found off a main road, again in a heavily wooded area,” Alex continues. “Same position and markings as the first and again no trace evidence on the scene. We did find what looks like where someone tried to cover up their footprint, so we followed that in to the woods for a bit and discovered what looks like tracks from a snowmobile.”

“This was when you asked Agent Danvers for advice?” Henshaw asks.

“I figured a fresh set of eyes couldn’t hurt,” Alex shrugs in response. “She’s actually the one that found the covered up footprints and tracks.”

“Is that when you suggested the Sheriff call us?” Henshaw asks Kara, who had remained quiet and by the door the entire time.

“No sir,” Kara shakes her head, “I had brought it up earlier, but it wasn’t until after the Sheriff told me these weren’t the first bodies like this she’d encountered that I told her she should call you.”

That new revelation brought silence to the room and all eyes looked to Alex.

“Right,” Alex says and steps out of the way of the second cork board. “About ten or eleven years ago I was serving with a special investigative unit in the army stationed in Afghanistan,” Alex says, and notices Sam lift her eyebrow in surprise. “We were investigating two murders that took place in two separate villages during the course of a few weeks,” Alex motions to the first set of pictures on the board. “It was an unidentified female with no apparent cause of death who had, what we thought at the time, were some ritualistic markings all over her. Those are actually more common over there than most people think.”

“Same markings?” Henshaw asks as Olsen slides him the print out.

“Damn near,” Alex nods her head. “The slight differences aren’t that obvious.”

“Looks more like he was learning his craft,” Sam says as she steps up to the corkboard to exam the pictures closer.

“Right,” Alex agrees. “There were two more bodies found after I left. A Navy Corpsman I worked with worked that case and got me these files.”

“Are you still in contact with him?” Olsen asks.

“Her,” Alex corrects, “and yes. She moved here a few years ago after she was discharged.”

“We may need to talk to her at some point,” Henshaw says.

“No problem,” Alex shrugs. “She works the night shift, so she sleeps during the day but she’s usually around.”

“What else,” Henshaw asks with a knowing look. This is clearly a man that has been at this job for a very long time.

“Both our Jane Does here have had a word carved in to their sides,” Alex says with a slight shiver at the thought of it, “Mine. Also, each one of the six victims I have here are all numbered.”

“Numbered?” Olsen asks raising an eyebrow in question.

“Behind each one’s left ear, there are roman numerals,” Alex explains. “The first ones in Afghanistan from ten years ago are mark eleven through fourteen. The two we’ve found here are marked eight and nine.”

The room goes silent as they all take in that bit of information.

“We considered that maybe he was counting down,” Kara offers after a moment, “but so far they’ve all been found in order. Eleven, then twelve and so on. If he was counting down it’d be opposite that.”

“It could be that he decided to restart his count once he got to the states,” Olsen offers, and Alex nods her head. _Anything’s possible at this point_.

“Were there any words carved in to the victims from Afghanistan?” Sam asks, titling her head while still studying the pictures.

“No. Not on any of the ones I investigated, and I didn’t see any notes about words on the reports I read,” Alex answers. “I had copies of all the reports printed up for all of you. It just takes times to get things like that around here and you got here quicker than we expected.”

“Not a problem,” Henshaw assures, “we have a lot to go off of with what you have here. Would it be possible for you to take two of my group out to the latest crime scene?”

“Sure,” Alex says with a shrug, “I can run them out there.”

“Thank you, Sheriff. We’ll start digging through things here then,” Henshaw says with a grin, “Can I have a word with you before you go?”

“Absolutely,” Alex says as she leads the way out of the conference room and to her office.

“I just wanted to take a minute to let you know that this is still your investigation,” Henshaw says to Alex’s great surprise. “We’re just here to offer you a few extra sets of hands and to give some insight in to who could possibly be doing this. At the end of the day, this is still your show.”

Alex takes a moment before responding, nodding her head, “I appreciate that Agent Henshaw. I will give you a fair warning that not everyone here may be as happy to see you as I am.” She leans against the front of her desk, leaning against her arms for support.

“Past run in with federal government can do that,” Henshaw says with a knowing look on his face.

“You know?” Alex asks.

“I always do my research Sheriff,” he assures her with a grin. “This is a different situation than back then. You asked us here this time, last time your father wasn’t given a choice.”

Alex didn’t know what to say to that, so she just nods a bit dumbly.

“I do have an important question for you Sheriff,” the agent in front of her says and Alex looks at him. “Where’s the coffee machine?” he asks with a huge grin.

Alex can’t help but chuckle at that and she pushes herself off her desk saying, “I will gladly show you.”

“Good,” he says with a chuckle, “I’m not sure I’d make it long without that.”

“I know that feeling,” Alex agrees with a sense that maybe she had made the right call inviting them out here.

Half an hour later Alex found herself back in the same spot she had been in barely a few hours ago, long before the sun had even considering rising.

“So, we found the second body here,” Alex says as she makes her way in to the clearing.

“How did you find the bodies?” Olson asks from behind her.

“Anonymous 911 caller,” Alex answers stopping at the edge of the clearing. “Same as the first.”

“Arrogant son of a bitch to call it in himself,” Olson says rubbing his gloved hands together.

“Not arrogant,” Sam corrects as she steps up between him and Alex. “He wants them found. These are his masterpieces and what good is that if no one can see them?”

“Hmm, guess I’d hadn’t thought of it like that,” Alex admits. “She was laid out here,” Alex gestures to the area in front of them. “Looked like she was sleeping, except for all the marks.”

“All the footprints here are accounted for?” Olsen asks as he steps closer to the scene.

“Every-one,” Alex nods as she walks to the other side of where the victim had been laid out. “Paramedics were the first on the scene, then my Deputy and myself, then the Coroner and his team. Every boot print has an owner.”

“What about the ones you said Agent Danvers found?” Sam asks following Alex’s steps.

“Over here,” Alex says as she leads Sam to the spot Kara had noticed the covered up steps. “We followed straight out from here and found the tracks.”

“Show me?” Sam asks Alex.

“Um, sure,” Alex says a bit surprised by the request. “You good here?” she asks Olsen, who was still surveying the scene.

“I’ll manage,” he answers without a look at them.

“Alright,” Alex says and heads back in to the woods. “It’s maybe half a mile or so.”

“You could tell that in the dark?” Sam asks as she follows behind Alex.

“I grew up crawling through these woods, plus six years of army training,” Alex chuckles. “Something never completely leave you.”

“Isn’t that the truth,” Sam says in a low voice and Alex wasn’t sure if she had been meant to hear the comment or not.

“The cold doesn’t seem to bother you as much as Olsen,” Alex says as a way of changing subjects.

Sam snickers and says, “For someone that spent twenty-five years in the NYPD he sure is a wimp in the cold. I grew up in upstate Maine.”

“Ah, that’s almost as bad as growing up out here,” Alex laughs as she steps over a small downed tree. She stops and makes sure Sam has no issues with it before continuing forward.

“I spent my fair share of time out in the cold when I was a kid,” Sam confirms with a nod of thanks for Alex making sure she was fine.

Alex doesn’t say anything to that but smiles to herself.

“Here they are,” Alex says after walking a few minutes in silence. “Much easier to see in the daylight.”

“So, he drove her out here and then carried her the rest of the way,” Sam says looking back the way they had come. “That’s still a good distance to carry a full grown woman. Any idea where the tracks lead?”

“It wasn’t safe to try and follow them in the dark,” Alex shakes her head.

“We should see how far they go now,” Sam says as she pulls out her phone. She types out a quick message before sticking it back in to her pocket. “I just let Olsen know we were going to check it out.”

“Alright then,” Alex says as they start to walk along the track marks in the snow. “There aren’t any homes for at least ten miles and that’s just old man Smith. He’s too old and too worn out to pull off something like this.”

“Everyone’s a suspect,” Sam counters, “at least until they aren’t.”

“Am I?” Alex asks a bit curious.

Sam chuckles as she ducks around a branch, “I did say everyone, and you’d be surprised but it’s happened before.”

“I thought local law enforcement had to ask you to get involved?” Alex asks.

“They do,” Sam nods, “but they also think that by asking us to help it’ll keep us from looking at them.”

“That doesn’t make sense,” Alex says making a face, “You profile the killer, which helps identify them, so if it’s a cop you’re going to know that.”

“They find that out, eventually,” Sam shrugs.

“Are you ever wrong?” Alex asks as she stops, looking forward to seeing if there are any signs as to where the tracks lead.

“Profiles aren’t an exact science,” Sam says stopping beside her. It’s only then that Alex realizes the agent has been walking with her hand resting on her pistol. “They give us an idea of what the unsub is thinking, why they do what they do. What motivates them to commit these crimes, murder, arson, rape, any number of things.”

“You’ve done a lot of these huh?” Alex asks as they start walking again.

“I’ve only been with the unit about five years,” Sam says in way of an answer. “It kind of becomes a habit after a while, you start profiling everyone you meet. Makes dating fun,” she adds with a chuckle.

“I guess so,” Alex agrees as she notices a clearing ahead of them. “This might be something.”

They walk the remainder of the way in silence, both checking out their surrendering as they went, this time Alex’s hand also rested on her revolver. When they reached the small clearing the snowmobile tracks ended, replaced instead by something else.

“Tire marks,” Sam sighs, “guess we know where he entered the woods at.”

“Looks that way,” Alex says in a quite voice as she squats down to take a closer look at the marks. She pulls her phone out of her shirt pocket and snaps a few pictures on her phone then stands up again. “Here,” she says handing her phone to Sam, “Send these to your tech person.”

“Shouldn’t take her long to find a match,” Sam responds as she types in the number and send the pictures off.

“I’ll get people out here to get impressions of the tracks too,” Alex says as her eyes follow the tire tracks. “We’re not far from the main road. I’m going to follow the tracks and see if there’s anything else.”

“I’ll come with you,” Sam says as she hands Alex her phone back.

Alex nods as she replaces her phone in her pocket and starts off walking.

“How long until we hit a solid road?” Sam asks after a few moments of walking in silence.

“Half a mile, maybe,” Alex answers with a shrug. “The highway curves back around this way. Looks like he made one hell of a curve to get from here to his dump sight.”

“Probably figured he couldn’t get there any other way,” Sam reasons as she types out a quick message on her phone before putting it away again.

“That’s smart,” Alex grunts as they continue, “letting your team know where you are at all times.”

“Henshaw is big on accountability,” Sam responds with a shrug.

“Tends to be a thing after you’ve lost people,” Alex thinks out loud.

“What makes you think Henshaw has lost anyone?” Sam ask watching Alex as they walked.

Alex shrugs and answers honestly, “Once you’ve lost someone under your command, you just have this look. Like you’re always on the look out now because you know how bad it can get. If I had to guess I’d say he was either military or career police department.”

Sam shakes her head with a chuckle, “You’d make a good profiler Sheriff.”

“Just speaking from experience,” Alex says with a lopsided smile. As they rounded a small bend in the trail Alex stops dead in her tracks and drops to a crouch, causing Sam to do the same.

There, on the path in front of them, just before the hard road starts, is an old truck.

“You scared the shit out of me,” Sam huffs out a small chuckle from her spot behind Alex.

“Sorry,” Alex says as she surveys the area on front of them, “old habits.”

“Good habit to have,” Sam says following Alex’s gaze to the truck in front of them. “I don’t imagine we’re going to get lucky enough to find our guy taking a nap in the cab.”

“Probably not,” Alex says as she draws her revolver from its holster, “Want to take a look?”

“Thought you’d never asks,” Sam says with a grin as she pulls her service pistol. With a small nod she starts down the trail towards the parked truck, staying low and to the right.

“I’m starting to like this girl,” Alex chuckles lowly to herself as she follows after Sam, staying to the left to cover the driver’s side. They make their way slowly towards the truck, Alex making sure to keep Sam in her side vision as she goes.

As they approach the back of the truck Alex motions for them to stop and Sam does, crouching lower but keeping her weapon trained on the back window.

Alex gives a small nod then in a loud voice says, “Bella Rosa Sheriff’s Department. Exit the vehicle with your hands raised.”

They wait a moment and when no one exits the vehicle Alex looks back to Sam who shakes her head, indicating that she sees no movement from the truck.

Keeping her revolver trained on the driver’s side window Alex approaches the door and reaches for the handle with her right hand. Keeping her breathing steady Alex pulls the handle and opens the door, coming to her full height in the same moment. Her eyes search the cab of the truck but find nothing.

With a huff she lets her left arm drop to her side, revolver now pointed at the ground, as Sam comes around the back of the truck, pistol still aimed towards the window.

“There’s no one here,” Alex says with a shake of her head.

“Didn’t figure we’d get that lucky,” Sam sighs as she replaces her pistol in the holster on her hip. “Maybe there’s something in there we can use to ID our guys at least.”

Alex huffs a short chuckle and answers, “I have a feeling we’re not going to find much.”

Sam walks up beside Alex and looks inside, “You have got to be kidding me.”

The entire bench seat of the truck was covered and wrapped in plastic, along with the steering wheel, the gear shift and the floor boards. Every inch was covered, and the smell of bleach and Windex burned Alex nostrils.

“I’m going to call my forensic people out here and see if they can find anything,” Alex says as she takes a step away from the truck and pulls her phone out.

“How many techs do you have, Sheriff?” Sam asks still looking at the cab of the truck.

“Two,” Alex answers as she dials the number to the station. “They got certified three years ago when the county took away the funding we had for our actual forensic team. We make do with what we have.”

Sam only nods in understanding while Alex makes the call, she walks slowly around the truck hoping to gain something from it. There’s not much there, no license plate, no inspection or anything else to show ownership. While the truck had many small scratches and dents, none of them looked new enough to give signs of a recent wreck.

“One smart son of a bitch,” Sam mumbles under her breath as she circles back around to the driver’s side door, which is still open. Looking inside she shakes her head again. _Clearly not his first time at this_, Sam thinks to herself. _He’s smart, clearly someone that knows what we’ll be looking for and how to prevent us from finding it. It must have taken his years to work all this out_.

“So, he obviously had a second vehicle waiting here,” Alex says from behind her startling Sam out of her thoughts. “Transferred the snowmobile from this one to that one. Parking it in the stones like this keeps us from getting tire tracks on the second vehicle.”

“Two vehicles,” Sam muses, “could mean we’re looking at more than one unsub Sheriff.”

“Great, so we’re dealing with two psychos,” Alex mumbles as she looks at the woods around them. They were less then twenty feet from the main road here, just enough room for two vehicles to be parked and still be off the road. “We don’t get much traffic out this way this time of year. Once the snow starts it can be tough to get through, he or they, clearly knew that. Which mean I have two of these people living here and I didn’t see it.”

“Most people like this fit in to their communities,” Sam says, “when they get arrested, we also hear how it doesn’t make any sense because they were such a great guy. It’s one of those things that you don’t see coming until its here.”

“Well its here,” Alex says in a low voice, “so we better find something.”


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kara and Lena are about to come face to face with a part of their past none of them had thought about.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm posting this one a day early because it looks like I'll be traveling most of the day tomorrow and I wanted to make sure it gets posted.

“I thought you were supposed to going home this afternoon?” Agent Dox ask as he emerged from the conference room at the back of the station.

“Packing up now,” Kara answers with a smile as she slides her laptop into her bag. She’d been using one of the extra desks in the office to give herself some room to work. “Agent Henshaw made it clear that I’m still to spend time at home. Makes me feel guilty,” Kara admitted with a frown.

“Don’t,” Querl offers with a smile, “You’re supposed to be on vacation remember? Hunting down a serial killer is not what most people do on vacation.”

“I guess I never was very good at going on vacation,” Kara says with a grin.

“Seeing that this was our first vacation since we got married, I’d say not,” Lena’s voice comes from the front of the station causing Kara to look that way in surprise.

“Lena, what are you doing here?” she asks a bit shocked.

“Thought my wife might want a lift home,” Lena smiles. “Plus, your mother is over and she’s watching Emma right now. I figured a few minutes alone would be nice.”

“Sounds very nice,” Kara says with a nod. “Come on back, I’m just finishing packing up then we can head out.”

Lena walks through the gate and to the desk Kara and Querl are standing at.

“I’m Lena, Kara’s wife if you hadn’t guessed,” she offers with a wide smile, extending her hand to the other agent.

“Pleasure. I’m Querl Dox but you can call me Brainy,” Brainy says taking the offered hand. “I’m the tech analysis for the team.”

“Sounds like an interesting job,” Lena replies dropping her hand, “How’d you get the nickname Brainy?” she asks with a smile.

“That was Agent Olsen,” Brainy answers with a smile. “He used to call in and asks for whatever and he’d say that he needed my big brain for the tasks. Over time I started answering the phone ‘the brain’ and eventually just Brainy.”

Lena laughs at the story and looks from Kara to Brainy, “Sounds like things seldom get boring with this group.”

“There’s always something to do, that’s for sure,” Brainy answers with a nod.

“Well, I’ll be,” a voice comes from the front of the station. “I never really thought I’d see you two here again.”

Deputy Darrell Schreider, hair shaggy and uniform looking unkept, walks through the waist high gate and towards them. Brainy notices how both Kara’s and Lena’s face darken as the man approaches and knows there must be some kind of history there.

Finally, as the man is within a few feet of them, Kara looks up and says, “We don’t have anything to talk about.”

“That’s something coming from the two women that sent my brother to prison,” Darrell sneers at them.

“Your brother,” Kara replies with a snarl, “got himself sent to prison.”

“That’s not how I see it,” he looks from Kara to Lena, who still refuses to meet his look.

“I don’t care how you see it,” Kara spits back, Lena taking an unconscious step closer to her wife. “What he did was repulsive.”

“I didn’t see you complaining when that little girl was born,” Darrell says back. “Speaking of, where is my little niece? I know you wouldn’t have come all the way out here without her.”

“She’s not your niece,” Kara says in a low tone, “and you will never see her.”

“Bullshit,” Darrell snarls at Kara, taking an aggressive step forward, putting her within arms reach now. “She’s my blood, not yours. She’s not your daughter.”

In one quick movement Kara takes three steps forward, grabbing Darrell by the front of his shirt and slamming him hard against the wall. The movement obviously catches the larger man by surprise and his eyes widen as his head hits the wall behind him, his hand coming up to grab at Kara’s, that are tighten in his shirt.

“Let’s get one thing straight right now,” Kara snarls in a darker voice than Lena could ever remember hearing. “That is my little girl and my wife. If I ever see you anywhere near either one of them your brother is going to have to find a new pen pal.” Kara leans in closer, face nearly touching Darrell’s now and says in a low voice, “I’ll kill you and not think twice about it.”

“Kara, let him go,” Brainy’s voice breaks through some of the fog around Kara’s brain and she realizes that the agent has his hands on Kara’s left arm, calmly trying to talk to her. Kara shakes her head and looks back at Darrell.

“What the hell is going on in here?” Alex’s voice says from somewhere in the distance. The next thing Kara knows her sister’s hands on her shoulders and she feels the fabric of Darrell’s shirt slipping through her hands.

“Are you out of your fucking mind?” Alex ask as she pushes Kara down in to a chair in her office, Kara not even remembering walking the short distance there. “Lucky for you we didn’t have a station full of people.”

“What?” Kara asks, her mind still trying to catch up.

“Hey, you ok?” Alex says sitting in the chair next to Kara. “What the hell happened?” Alex asks as she glances over Kara’s shoulder to where Lena sits on the couch in the corner.

“Darrell,” Lena sighs, tears in her eyes, “He was just being a jackass. He said Emma is his niece and that Kara isn’t.”

“I just got pissed,” Kara says, interrupting her wife with a frown. “He wants to see Emma.”

Alex sighs deeply, “He can’t. We made sure of that during the trial. Nate, or his family, have no connection to Emma. They don’t get to see her or talk to her, no contact.”

“I don’t want him around Lena either,” Kara says her tone still dark.

“I’ll put him out on patrol so he shouldn’t be around the station much,” Alex agrees with a nod. “You two should head back to the house. Keep her there the rest of the day,” Alex says to Lena who nods.

They all stand, and Kara turns to her sister and says, “I’m sorry Alex. All I could think was…”

“I know,” Alex nods, “it’s fine. Go home, hold the little one and try to forget it. I’ll be home later.”

Kara gives Alex a nod and Alex pats her sister on the shoulder as she stands up.

“Are you alright?” Alex asks Lena in a low voice when the blonde stands up from the couch.

“I think so,” Lena answers honestly. “He just looks so much like his brother.”

“I know and I’m sorry,” Alex says with a sigh. “With everything going on it must have slipped my mind that he’d be around.”

“It’s alright,” Lena says with a small smile. “We’re going to go back to the house and work on dinner.”

“I’ll try to be there,” Alex promises as she opens the door to her office. Alex glances around the work area and sees that Darrell is still sitting in a chair near the conference room, Agent Dox standing next to him. The young agent looks out of place and concern etches his face. Agent Arias was leaning against the desk opposite them, watching Darrell with a questioning look. Alex gives her a small nod and steps out of the office, Kara and Lena behind her.

“I’ll see you guys soon,” Alex says as her sister and wife walk through the gate and head out of the station. Once they are out of sight Alex turns around and walks straight to her Deputy, still sitting looking smug.

“Do you want to explain to me what the hell that was about?” Alex ask him trying to keep her voice level. This was something she has worried about since taking the job as Sheriff, knowing that Darrell and Nate were brothers.

“Nothing to explain, Sheriff. You saw it all with your own eyes,” Darrell answers holding his arms open as if the answer were obvious. “That crazy sister of yours attacked me, for no reason.”

Alex takes a breath before she speaks, “You know the court’s order Darrell. You can’t see or ask about Emma.”

“That’s bullshit!” Darrell says as he comes to his feet faster than Alex had ever seen him move. “She’s my blood, not hers, not yours, mine!” Coming to his feet had brought Darrell within a few inches of Alex and it was taking all her strength to not lose her anger.

“You’re on administrative leave until further notice,” Alex says through her teeth. “I don’t want to see you around the station or around Agent Danvers or her family. If you do you’ll be detained for violating a court order.”

“Let’s go Deputy,” Agent Arias says from beside Darrell. Alex hadn’t noticed it until now but both agents had taken up positions on either side of Darrell as soon as he had come to his feet.

With another snarl at Alex, Darrell shoves past her and walks through the station. Sam nods her head at Agent Dox who follows after the Deputy, making sure he leaves the station, passing a confused looking Maggie on the way.

“What the hell did I miss?” the confused medic asks as she joins Alex and Sam by the conference room.

“A lot,” Alex answers looking from Sam to Maggie then back again. “My office,” she adds when she meets Sam’s concerned eyes. With a short nod from the other two Alex turns back to her office, moving quickly to sit behind the desk.

“I know Darrell is an overall dick,” Maggie says as soon as she’s in the office, “but what the hell was that? It looked like you two were going to rip each other’s throats out.”

“For a few seconds there, I thought we might,” Alex admits rubbing her forehead.

“This was about the assault?” Sam asks as she calmly walks in and closes the door behind her.

“Jesus,” Maggie says as she drops in to the chair opposite Alex, “I wondered how long it was going to take for him to final snap.”

“You know?” Alex ask dropping her hands and looking at the pair in front of her.

“Small town,” Maggie answers with a shrug.

“It’s part of Kara’s personal record,” Sam admits as she takes the seat next to Maggie. “I read all the files of new agents applying to the unit.”

Alex sighs, “Darrell’s been fine about it for years now. He’s gone to visit his brother twice a month, but he’s never said anything about Emma until today.”

“It could be stress from knowing Kara and Lena are in town and then actually seeing them here,” Sam offers with a shrug, “Could have been enough to cause him to lose his temper finally.”

“I guess,” Alex says shaking her head with another sigh. “I’m just glad he pulled this when the station was practically empty.”

“Yea, where is everyone?” Maggie asks, “I was under the impression this place would be crawling with feds by now.”

“We found a truck near the crime scene,” Alex explains, “and Agents Henshaw and Olsen are out there with two of my Deputies collecting evidence. Kara was here working with Agent Dox and Agent Arias here was with me.”

“You found a truck?” Maggie ask sitting up slightly in her chair. “That’s a first.”

“I’m sorry,” Sam says, her turn to now sound confused, “Who exactly are you?” she asks looking at Maggie.

“Agent Arias, this is Maggie Sawyer,” Alex says with a smile. “She was in my unit in Afghanistan and worked the two cases with me. I asked her to stop in and see if she can give us any insight.”

“You were in the army as well?” Sam asks.

Maggie chuckles, “No, I was way too smart for that. I was a Corpsman in the Navy.”

“So, you’re a medic?” Sam lifts an eyebrow. “Were you the medic that found the first body?”

“Yea,” Maggie answers with a sigh, “and I already know you’re going to profile me and try to decide if I had anything to do with these murders. I’ll save you the trouble,” Maggie smile at the agent, “I was on duty all night when the first body was found, and I was with a friend all night last night.”

“Don’t mind her,” Alex says with a chuckle, “she was an asshole before she got blown to hell.”

“Look who’s talking,” Maggie says flipping Alex off. “I was just following your lead.”

“You two always like this?” Sam asks with a small chuckle.

Maggie and Alex look at each other, then both shrug in unison.

“Pretty much,” Maggie says.

“Usually,” Alex answers at the same time causing Sam to chuckle again.

“Are you sure you two aren’t related?” Sam asks gesturing between the two.

“I’m too good looking to share genes,” Maggie says with a slick smile.

“And humble too,” Alex adds on with a shake of her head.

Sam laughs then says, “The old saying used to be ‘first witness, first suspect’ but that’s not true as much anymore. First responders tend to be the ones to find the bodies.” Sam looks at Maggie and adds, “Plus you have an alibi, so that helps.”

“Good, because while Cap gave me off tonight, I don’t think he’ll give me off long enough to go to prison,” Maggie jokes.

“Why’d he give you tonight off?” Alex asks surprised.

“It’s no secret the Feds are in town,” Maggie answers looking from Alex to Sam, “and the Captain knows enough about my life before I got here to think I might be more useful here than there.”

“So, you worked the two cases with the Sheriff previously?” Sam asks.

“Three actually,” Maggie answers with a nod, “Our unit investigated another one after she left, plus one more after I was gone.”

“Why weren’t you there for the fourth one?” Sam asks looking at Maggie.

Maggie chuckles but answers, “Sheriff wasn’t kidding when she said I got blown to hell. RPG landed right in front of me, lucky for me the guy firing it had shitty aim.”

Sam is silent a moment then asks a simple question, “How bad?”

Maggie sighs and Sam notices that Alex has remained quiet but watches her friend closely.

“Bad enough to earn me a one way ticket home and a discharge,” Maggie’s answer is a little vague, but Sam doesn’t push the issue.

“Well, Henshaw and Olsen should be back soon, and we can go over everything we know,” Sam says after a moment passes. “From there we’ll build the profile and present it, probably tomorrow.”

Alex hesitates then asks, “Are you going to tell Henshaw about what happened with Darrell?”

“I’m not one to spy on my team mates,” Sam offers Alex a small smile, “As long as it doesn’t interfere with her work, and isn’t relevant to the case, I don’t see a reason to bring it up.”

“Thank you,” Alex says, retuning the smile gratefully.

**

“Kara, you look terrible,” Eliza Danvers says as Kara and Lena walk into the kitchen at Alex’s house a half an hour after leaving the statin. Kara hadn’t wanted to go straight back to the house after her run in with Darrell, saying she needed to clear her head first.

They hadn’t gone anywhere special, Kara just driving in silence, her hand in Lena’s. Lena hadn’t needed to say anything, she was just there for her wife while she processed what had happened, and when Kara said she was ready to go home she had squeezed her hand reassuringly.

“Thanks mom,” Kara says with a tired smile. “Long day,” she adds with a shrug when her mother gives her a look.

“Is there anything I can do?” her mother asks with a worried look.

“I just want to see Emma,” Kara answers.

“She’s in the office with Scout,” Eliza answers. “I’m going to start working on dinner.”

Kara nods her head once and disappears from the room. When she reaches the doorway to the office she stops and watches her daughter. Emma is sitting on the lounge chair in the corner of the office, Scout curled up on the end of the chase, holding her favorite book _If You Give A Mouse A Cookie_.

“If you give a mouse a cookie,” Emma reads out loud. Kara isn’t sure she’s actually reading the words so much as she has the book memorized by now, “he’s going to asks for a glass of milk.”

“When you give him the milk, he’ll probably asks for a straw,” Kara says the next part, causing Emma to look up. When she sees Kara standing there her face lights up and she wiggles off the lounge, bumping Scout on her way.

“Momma!” she says as she runs the short distance to Kara, who bends down and scoops her up.

“There’s my big girl,” Kara says as she wraps her arms around Emma and stands up.

“I was reading to Scout,” Emma answers, wrapping her arms around Kara’s neck, “he liked it.”

“I see that,” Kara says with a smile as Emma pulls back enough to look at her.

“Are you sad momma?” Emma asks, placing both of her hands on Kara’s cheeks and looking her in the eye.

Kara can’t help but chuckle a little at that, “A little,” she admits. Much like Lena, Emma always seemed able to read people, and very well.

“Oh no,” Emma gasps, covering her mouth with one hand, the other still on Kara’s face, “Why are you sad?”

“Momma had a long day at work,” Lena answers from the doorway behind them and Kara turns to face her. “She just needs a little hug therapy,” Lena smiles at the sight of her wife and daughter.

“From me?” Emma asks looking from Lena back to Kara.

“Always from you,” Kara says with a smile and a nod.

Emma smiles and throws her arms back around Kara’s neck, and Kara can hear the girl giggle in her ear.

“Mommy too,” Emma says as she waves at Lena, who smiles and steps up behind Kara, wrapping her arms around both girls.

Kara closes her eyes and takes a deep breath, breathing in both her girls as her mind finally starts to settle.

When she opens her eyes, she looks at her wife and asks in a hushed voice, “Are you ok?”

“I will be,” Lena responds, we she always does.

“Is mommy sad too?” Emma asks as she pulls back from her hug and looks at Lena.

“I think mommy needs some hug therapy too,” Kara smiles.

Emma looks at Lena who smiles wide and nods. Emma throws her little arms up and leans over, wrapping her arms around Lena’s neck.

“My silly girl,” Lena laughs as Emma places a wet kiss on her cheek. Lena reaches up and tickles the girl, causing her to wriggle. Kara can’t help but laugh at the two as Emma finds her way into Lena’s arms.

Kara allows herself a moment to watch her girls as they laugh together. There had been a time, back when Lena was still pregnant, where Kara had been asked how she felt about Lena having a baby to the man that had raped her. Wouldn’t having the child be a daily reminder of what had happened?

Kara had simply stated that Emma was her daughter, no one else’s, and that was all that matter. Watching her wife and daughter now, Kara knows how right she had been. Her entire world stands in front of her, giggling and all smiles. When Kara looks at her daughter, that’s all she sees, her daughter.

“I’m going to talk to mom,” Kara says after a moment, “probably should get her up to speed.”

“I’m sure she’ll appreciate that,” Lena says with a smile. “I’m going to stay here with the monkey and finish reading.”

“I’ll be back soon,” Kara says, leaning over and placing a soft kiss on Lena’s temple. “I love you,” she whispers and hears Lena hum in response.

“I love you,” Lena replies with a smile.

Kara heads out of the office and back into the kitchen, where her mother stands by the sink, cleaning vegetables for dinner.

“Something happened,” Eliza says, without turning to look at Kara. It wasn’t a question, she never asked a question when she knew the answer, Kara and Alex had learned that from her.

“It did,” Kara nods as she opens the cabinet next to the fridge and takes down a glass. She opens the fridge and pulls out a carton of juice, pouring herself half a glass, before replacing it. “Darrell showed up at the station,” she says as she lifts the glass and takes a sip.

Her mother sighs deeply, turning off the running water, “I always knew that one of these days he was going to snap. I had just hoped you and Lena wouldn’t be there when he did. What happened?”

“He walked in while I was getting ready to leave,” Kara says with a shake of her head, hating the idea of having his face stuck in her head. “Started talking about Emma and how she’s his niece and how she’s not,” Kara stops short.

Eliza finally turns around, a smile on her face, and she steps around the small island, to stand in front of her youngest daughter.

“You know better,” Eliza says, reaching out and taking Kara’s free hand, “that girl is as much your daughter as you are mine.”

That brings a smile to Kara’s face and she sighs, “I know. It’s just being face to face with him, plus all the looks we’ve gotten from people since we’ve been here. This whole damn town knows what happened and it feels like they’re watching us to see how we react. I hate it,” Kara says, shaking her head again.

“I know,” Eliza says with a nod, “and I understand why you haven’t come back since then.”

“I never wanted to stay here,” Kara says causing her mother to laugh.

“That was never a secret,” Eliza says as she walks back over to the sink and grab a kitchen knife. “You were making plans to leave when you were in middle school.”

“I was always so worried that you’d be disappointed in me,” Kara admits quietly,

“How could I possible be?” Eliza asks, pulling the first carrot from the sink and placing it on a wooden cutting board.

“For leaving,” Kara answers, “for not wanting to stay here and take after dad.”

“Of course not,” her mother assures her with a smile. “After everything that’s happened in your lifetime, I’ve often thought that the best thing for you would be to leave this town,” he mother sighs as she starts cutting the carrot into pieces. “Somedays I wish Alex had done the same.”

“It’s still hard for her isn’t it?” Kara asks, leaning against the counter next to her mother.

“She still blames herself,” Eliza answers with a sad sigh, “No matter what I’ve told her over the years she still thinks losing your brother was her fault.” She pauses then adds, “I think she still sees him here.”

“Probably why she doesn’t want to leave,” Kara reasons with a nod. “If she does, she’ll feel like she’s lost him for good.”

“I can see why they want you as a profiler,” her mother smiles at her earning her a look from Kara. “What? I’m not allowed to be proud?”

“I think you’re a little bias mom,” Kara smiles and catches the dish towel Eliza throws at her.

Eliza chuckles then sighs and says, “Is it too much to hope that your sister finds the kind of peace you have?”

“Give her time mom,” Kara says as she wraps an arm around her mother’s shoulders. “She’s got to want it first.”

“Or she’ll get lucky, like you, and have the perfect woman walk into her life at just the right time,” Eliza smiles.

“There is always that,” Kara chuckles, letting her arm drop. “Though I wouldn’t hold your breath on that one mom. Lightening doesn’t tend to strike twice.”

**

Alex sighs as she looks at her watch, it was well after dinner time and she was sure that by now her mother would have given up on her making it home. Nine chances out of ten there was going to be a covered dish in her fridge when she gets home.

She signs the last form from the stack on the corner of her desk and shakes her head. The amount of paperwork it takes to have evidence sent off normally is only half this but considering there’s a rush on it and that they have the backing of the FBI, well it tends to complicate matters even more. She needed to ensure that the chain of custody was still secure, having to add new names to her roster for the crime lab to acknowledge them.

Alex reaches up and flicks off the small lamp sitting opposite the stack of paperwork and stands from behind her desk, grabbing her coat from her chair as she does.

She steps out of her office, pulling the door closed behind her, and is surprised to see a light still on in the conference room. She’d been under the impression all of the agents had headed to the small hotel in town to settle in for the night. The place wasn’t big and was now full up with all the agents in town, it was only a bed and breakfast after all.

Thinking that the agents must have just forgotten to turn off one of the lights, Alex walks the short distance from her office to the conference room, and swings open the door. She is startled to find Agent Arias still seated at the long conference table, laptop in front of her, and with an equally startled look on her face.

“Oh, sorry,” Alex stumbles, “I didn’t think anyone else was still here.”

“It’s alright,” Sam sighs, “I probably shouldn’t still be here but there were still a few things I wanted to finish up before I turned in for the night.”

“I was just doing the same,” Alex nods in understanding.

“Well, I’m glad you’re still here,” Sam says, causing Alex to raise an eyebrow in question. Sam chuckles and adds, “They left me here without a vehicle and I’m not entirely sure where the hotel is, we’re staying in.”

“Ah,” Alex chuckles, nodding, “I see. I would say that you could walk there from here, but it gets pretty cold here after the sun goes down, so I’ll give you a lift.”

“I appreciate that,” Sam smiles, “I just have a few more things to finish up.”

“No problem,” Alex says as she walks in and sits in a chair two away from the agent.

“I don’t bite,” Sam teases, her eyes not leaving the screen in front of her.

Alex suppress her smile and says, “I didn’t want you to think I was trying to read any of your top secret FBI files.”

Sam laughs and with a sigh says, “There’s nothing to secret about these. You can come take a look actually.”

Alex hesitates but when Sam finally moves her eyes from the screen to her she gets up and moves to sit beside the agent. There are several files sitting next to her, each one was photos attached. Photos of bodies and, if Alex had to guess, crime scenes.

“What are all these?” Alex asks as Sam slides the files over, letting her take a closer look. “Cases that you’ve solved?”

“No,” Sam shakes her head. She rests her elbows on the table in front of her and leans her head against them. “Those are cases that have reached out and asked for the BAU’s help.”

“There’s at least half a dozen here,” Alex says in surprise. “Why’d you chose to come here and not to any of them?”

“Some of these clearly aren’t serials,” Sam starts to explain, she reaches over and pulls out one of the files. “Like this one. The crime scene was a bloody mess and while the method of murder is gruesome, it was done by someone close to the family. Crimes of passion are the usual cause for most homicides.”

“So, this is one that you’d turn down?” Alex asks, trying to make sense of their process.

“Not exactly,” Sam smiles. “For cases like this we offer a consult.”

“Like a doctor?” Alex asks with a grin.

“In a way,” Sam smiles. “We take a look at the pictures from the scene and copies of the autopsy reports and the lives of the victims. From there we can give them a general description of who they’re looking for.”

“Does that work?” Alex asks looking down at the file in her hand. The pictures from the scene were gruesome, she would have hated to respond to something like that here. It looked as though a middle aged couple had been attacked during dinner, their bodies found next to the dining room table, the white table clothes stained red.

“Usually,” Sam nods, watching Alex as she studies the pictures. “What do you think?”

Alex takes another minute to look at the pictures before she answers, “If I had to guess, I’d say that whoever did this probably came in from the back door. There’s no broken glass so they had a key, supports your someone close to the family thing. They took the father out first, cut his throat,” Alex says as she sets down a picture of the husband. “Take out the stronger of the two and there’s less of a fight. The mother tried to help her husband, makes me think it was someone she didn’t think was going to hurt her.”

Alex stops and looks at Sam, who simply nods for her to continue. “They attacked the mother from behind, stabbing her multiple times,” she says as she sets the picture of the woman down. “Then they went back to the father. Took out a lot of rage on him,” Alex says as she glances at the coroner’s report. “Forty-seven stab wounds to the chest and abdomen, that’s a lot of pent up rage.”

“You keep referring to them as ‘mother’ and ‘father’,” Sam notes. “Why?”

“It says here that they have one son,” Alex says as she places a piece of paper on the table, “He did it.”

“You sound pretty certain of that,” Sam says, she’s watches how Sam’s eyes traveled over the pictures and reports. Taking everything in and processing it quickly.

“Look at the mother,” Alex says sliding the picture towards her. “Stabbed five times in the back and she was laying face down when police got there. He couldn’t look at her while he killed her or after. He felt bad about it. Dad was another story,” Alex sighs. “I’d look into their past more, but I think they’re going to find a history of mysterious injuries on the son as a child.”

“You’re thinking abuse?” Sam asks.

“I think it would account for this much rage,” Alex nods, looking at her. She smiles, sitting back in her chair, “If I had to guess anyway.”

“That was pretty good,” Sam says with a smile back.

“Did I pass your test?” Alex asks, clearly surprising the other woman.

Sam chuckles but says, “It wasn’t a test so much as I was just curious.”

“Curious to what?” Alex asks.

“To see if it’s just your sister that can process things so quickly,” Sam answers. “I can see now that it must be something in your blood.”

Sam notices how Alex’s face changes, darkening just slightly. Most people probably wouldn’t have notices it, but Sam has spent years learning how to read even the tiniest changes in a person.

“We come from a long line of law enforcement,” Alex offers. “I’m actually the fifth generation of Danvers to be Sheriff here.”

“Ah,” Sam nods, “So Danvers have always been the Sheriff here.”

“Not always,” Alex corrects, “There have been a few other. Sheriff Sullivan was Sheriff before me. All depends, but we have pretty much always been in the department.”

“That seems like a lot to live up to,” Sam says softly.

“It has its moments,” Alex shrugs. “it’s not all bad. I’ve pretty much known what I was going to do with my life since I was a kid.”

Sam watches Alex for another moment, there was something else there, just behind the Sheriff’s eyes, but considering the day they’d all had Sam decided that it was probably best not to push the issue.

Alex smiles at her and says, “I’m still a suspect, aren’t I?”

Sam can’t help but smile at the misunderstanding Alex took from her gaze but she just shrugs and repeats herself from earlier, “Everyone’s a suspect until they aren’t.”

“Fair,” Alex chuckles as she leans forward, resting her arms on the table. “You never stop getting cases, do you?”

“Rarely,” Sam answers with a sigh, looking back at the stack of files on the table. “Sometimes are worse than others but we can only work so many cases at a time.”

“You see every case that asks for help?” Alex asks.

“Most of them, yes,” Sam nods. “I spend a lot of my days talking to local law enforcement and getting more details. I present some to Henshaw and from there we have to make the decision as to which cases we can help and which ones we just can’t.”

“I can’t even begin to imagine how difficult that has to be,” Alex says, her voice full of a compassion Sam isn’t used to hearing.

“Most people don’t think about it like that,” Sam answers. “They think we only pick the cases that will make the BAU look good.”

“Most people don’t understand,” Alex allows, “but I’ll let you get your work done so you can call it a night.”

“I actually just need to send out three more emails and I’ll be all set,” Sam says and turns back to her computer.

“Take your time,” Alex says as she looks at the corkboards full of pictures and copies of Wally’s reports. Clearly the team had been busy since Alex had left them to their work when they had all reassembled a few hours ago.

It wasn’t long after Kara and Lena had left that the rest of the team arrived back from the scene. The truck had been searched, top to bottom, with next to nothing found. Alex couldn’t hide her irritation with that news.

The only good news that had come back with the group was Agent Henshaw’s praise of how well her two Deputies had worked while collecting evidence.

Deputy Shawn McGregor had been her on duty forensic tech today and Deputy Heather Martinez had assisted him and the FBI agents on the scene. Her younger Deputy, Martinez, was not yet certified in evidence collection but had plans on becoming so in the spring, when the certification was offered.

Martinez was only nineteen and the youngest member of the department, but she had proven herself when she attended the county police academy the summer after she graduated high school. In the year she’s been with the department she had never missed a shift and always had her paperwork done before the end of her shift. She was friendly when interacting with the people of their tiny town but was still looked at with respect.

Only a few weeks after she had started her career her and one other deputy had responded to a fight at Red’s. They had arrived to find two, very intoxicated, men fighting in the street in front of the bar. While the other deputy had grabbed the one man, the other, who happened to tower over Martinez, decided he didn’t want to go to jail that night.

He had attempted to rush her, figuring he could use his size to take her down, only to have the young woman slip to the side, leaving him off balance. The young deputy had then easily subbed the drunk man. The crowd that had gathered to watch stood in awed respect of the young woman. Since then no one had attempted to overpower her again.

Alex can’t help but smile at the memory, something that does not go unnoticed by the agent next to her.

Sam finishes her last email and closes her inbox, leaving only the background of her computer visible. The movement on the screen catches Alex’s attention and she glances that way. Alex is surprised when she sees two small children smiling back at her from the computer screen.

A girl, probably no older than one or two, had brown hair, light highlights glimmer in what Alex can only guess is the summer light. Brown eyes shine back, an almost identical fire that Alex had noticed in Sam’s eyes earlier in the day.

The boy, barely more than a newborn, with eyes as blue as the afternoon sky, giggled at whoever was standing behind the camera.

“Are they yours?” Alex asks motioning to the computer.

“They are,” Sam beams at the pictures. “Ruby and Michael.”

“How old?” Alex asks with a smile.

“In this picture Ruby was fourteen months and Michael was two months old,” Sam answers, “but this was taken last Christmas. Ruby turned two in September and Michael just turned one at the beginning of this month.”

“They’re cute,” Alex nods, “I didn’t realize you had kids.”

“It’s not normally something I include in my introductions,” Sam smiles as she closes her laptop. “Keeping family out of our work is something we all try to do. The last thing you want is a suspect knowing about them.”

“I can understand that,” Alex agrees. “I wasn’t trying to be nosy.”

“Not at all,” Sam smiles, sliding the computer into her shoulder bag. “I don’t think I have to worry about you.”

“Ah, so maybe I’m not a suspect anymore,” Alex jokes.

“Well, I can’t speak for the rest of the team,” Sam teases, “but as for me, I think you’re harmless.”

“Now, I’m not sure if I should take that as a compliment or an insult,” Alex chuckles as they both stand and start to make their way out of the conference room.

“I think in this case being called harmless would count as a compliment,” Sam smiles as she flicks off the light and closes the door behind them.

“Well then, I appreciate that,” Alex nods as they make their way towards the front of the station. Alex thinks for a moment then asks, “Have you eaten yet?”

“Um,” Sam says, as she presses her hand to her forehead in thought, “Not since before we got here, no. You?”

“I was supposed to be home three hours ago for dinner,” Alex admits. “So, I happen to know where there is an incredibly good meal waiting.”

“How do you know it’s so good?” Sam says, lifting an eyebrow in challenge.

“It was made by my mother and sister-in-law,” Alex answers as they push their way through the waist high gate, “so whatever it is, it’s good.”

“Well, with that ringing endorsement, how can I say no?” Sam smiles as they nearly run into a deputy hurrying into the station.

“Sheriff,” the young man says, sounding out of breath as he comes to a stop in front of them.

“Easy Neal,” Alex says with a calm face, despite the fact that, deep in her gut, she knew something bad had happened. “What’s going on?”

“Mark Smith, he was just found dead out back of Red’s,” Neal answers, catching his breath. “Tim is there right now securing the scene.”

“Alright,” Alex sighs, “Get Craig and head over there to help him. I’ll be right behind you.”

“Yes, Sheriff,” Neal says as he turns and leaves the station in a hurry.

“Son of a bitch,” Alex mutters once the younger officer is out of ear shot, “This is not what we needed right now.” She turns to face Sam and says, “I’ll have to do a raincheck on that dinner. I can still drop you off at the Inn you’re staying at on my way to the scene.”

“You’re not dropping me off anywhere,” Sam disagrees. “I’ll go with you to the scene.”

“This isn’t part of the case,” Alex shakes her head as she slips her coat on.

“We don’t know that,” Sam counters, “and we won’t until we get there.” She opens the door leading out of the station and waits for Alex.

“Alright,” Alex sighs as she walks through the door, “We’ll do it your way.”


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another murder, this time in the center of town.

The scene that Alex was met with felt like something out of her nightmares. Two of the Sheriff Department cruisers were parked in the street in front of Red’s, blocking off any traffic from getting close to the building. Red and blue flashing lights mingled with the glow of the streetlights lit the night sky in a way that tightened Alex’s chest.

Many years ago, Alex had been shaken awake by her mother in the middle of the night. Something had happened to her father and they needed to get up and go to see him. Alex hadn’t been told much, but to be fair she didn’t think her mother had been either.

She remembers her and Kara in the back seat of their mother’s car and being driven the short distance to town. It had been dark and Alex remembers the way the lights from all the emergency vehicles had lit up the street as she watched her mother get out of the car and walk over to the police cruiser in the street.

“You ok Sheriff?” Sam asks from her spot in the front passenger seat of Alex’s cruiser.

Alex blinks a few times but glances over at Sam with a short nod, “Yea. Let’s go see what happened.”

Alex opens her door and steps into the cold air, taking a thankful deep breath, letting the cold air clear her mind. They approach the small alley that runs between Red’s and the bank that sits beside it, Neal standing guard at the end of the alley.

“Glad you’re here Sheriff,” Neal says, his breath coming out in a small cloud. “Tim and Tony are both back with the body, along with the ambulance crew.”

“Thanks Neal,” Alex says as they walk past the young man Alex pats him on the shoulder.

“He’s young,” Sam acknowledges.

“He is,” Alex agrees. “We have a few young ones in the department right night. We had a mass retirement a few years ago and we’re still trying to make up for it. We’ve been short staffed since then.”

“That has to make things hard,” Sam nods.

“We do what we can,” Alex nods as they approach her two deputies, who are talking with the crew from the ambulance. “What’ve we got?”

“Lucy came out to throw out some trash and found Mark,” Tim says turning to Alex with a grim look. “It looks like someone beat him to death.”

“You call Wally?” Alex asks as Tim steps out of the way so Alex can see the scene.

“Yea,” Tim nods grimly, “Evening ma’am,” he adds when he sees Sam behind Alex.

“Evening Deputy,” Sam offers the man a small smile as she follows Alex to where the body lies.

Mark Smith had graduated high school two years before Alex, but she could still remember how he was like back then. He’d been on the football team, like most athletic guys back then, but he had also been arrogant and frankly an asshole.

Not much had changed since high school. Mark had gotten a job at a local garage and had been there ever since. He was a regular at Red’s and with the Sheriff’s Department, as he was prone to start fights when he’d had a rough day.

Alex stops a few feet away from where Mark lays on the ground, flat on his back, his face smashed in. He was barely recognizable like this but the tattoo on the side of his neck made it clear.

“How sure can you be on the ID?” Sam asks from Alex’s side, as though reading her mind.

“The tattoo on the side of his neck,” Alex says pointing towards it. “He thought the flames and pentagram made him look tougher in high school.”

“Hmm,” Sam nods as she takes a step away from Alex and closer to the body. She tilts her head to the side as she exams the body. “He was a fighter?”

“Yea,” Alex nods. “Arrested him multiple times for starting fights.”

“Think someone finally got the better of him?” Sam asks, looking back to Alex.

Alex takes a step forward and crouches down next to the body, “Doesn’t look like it. It doesn’t look like he has any defensive wounds.” Alex motions to his hands, which lay oddly flat by his side. “He didn’t get the chance to throw any punches. Whoever did this got the jump on him.”

“You’re right,” Sam nods, biting her lower lip in thought. “Did you move him?” Sam asks, looking over her shoulder to where Tim still stood.

“No ma’am,” Tim answers with a shake of his head. “He was laying just like that when I got here. Lucy said she didn’t touch him either.”

Alex stands back up and says in a low voice, “Strange.”

“What’s strange Sheriff?” Tim asks, stepping up behind her.

“Look at how he’s laying,” Alex says. “Have you ever seen someone fall during a fight and laid flat on their back, hands laid out beside them perfectly?”

“Don’t think so,” Tim nods. “You think whoever killed him laid him like this?”

“Hard to say,” Alex shakes her head and steps back up to the body, crouching beside Sam. “What are you thinking?”

“This was rage,” Sam says, her voice quiet with thought. “You don’t do this much damage without a lot of force behind it.”

“He was good at pissing people off,” Alex agrees. “Once Wally gets here, we’ll get a better idea on how long he’s been here. It looks like they took it all out on his face though.” They both stand up, staying quiet for a few minutes as they take in the scene.

“I need to call Henshaw,” Sam says at last as she pulls her phone from her pocket.

“You think it’s connected?” Alex asks a little surprised.

“Right now, we have to assume any crime like this that happens is connected,” Sam sighs. She turns away, lifting her phone to her ear she takes a few steps away.

“What the hell is going on?” Alex mutters to herself as she stands alone over another body. Alex can’t help but think how, just a few days ago her peaceful little town had been just that. Peaceful and quiet. Now she can’t help but wonder if things will ever be the same here.

Twenty minutes better Alex finds herself surrendered by not only her own deputies, but Wally and his crew, along with the team of FBI agents she herself had invited her.

“What are you thinking Wally?” Alex asks as she watches the older man crouch down next to the body of Mark Smith.

“I think I’m getting too old for this,” Wally sighs as he pulls what looks like a large meat thermometer from the bag by his side. “I’ll have an initial time of death for you here in a minute.”

“Alright,” Alex mumbles as Kara steps away from the group of other agents and comes to stand beside her sister. “How’s Lena?” Alex asks her.

“I’m going to owe her a real vacation when this is all over,” Kara chuckles shortly. “Who the hell would kill Mark Smith?”

“I could probably give you a list of people that have at least thought about it,” Alex mumbles, “but who do I think here could have done it? I don’t know.”

“We do still have violent crimes here,” Kara reasons with a sigh.

“Bar fights mostly and family disputes over the holidays,” Alex disagrees. “This is a whole new level of violent.”

“What the hell,” she hears Wally say as she pulls up Mark’s shirt to check the liver temperature to gauge time of death. “Sheriff, you’re going to want to see this.”

Alex, followed closely by Kara, step up to the opposite side of the body from Wally. Alex’s eyes widen as Wally pulls the shirt up far enough to reveal that words have been carved into the skin of Mark’s chest and abdomen.

_ **God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows** _

“Son of a bitch,” the words slip from Alex’s mouth before she can stop them.

“This is our guy,” Kara says in a sure voice from behind Alex and her sister turns her head enough to look at her.

“We pissed him off,” Alex says. She’s not asking, she knows. “We pissed him off and Mark just happened to cross his path.”

“I’d say your right,” Sam’s voice comes from behind Kara. “We need to make sure we collect everything here. He may have finally made a mistake.”

“Right,” Alex says as she rubs her temples against a headache that has been growing over the last half hour. She walks over to Tim and says, “Call Shawn and Heather and asks them to come in, then get ahold of Jerry and get him in too. We need everyone who’s certified or working on it, this needs to be done right.”

“You got it boss,” Tim nods and pulls out his phone, turning away to make the calls.

“What the hell is going on!” Alex hears a familiar voice say from somewhere near the end of the alley.

“Shit,” Alex mutters as she makes her way towards the street. She arrived just in time to see Maggie shove away Neal’s hand, as he tries to keep her from getting to the door of Red’s.

“What the hell is going on?” she demands from the young deputy.

“You know I can’t tell you that,” he’s saying when Alex reaches them.

“Can you tell junior here,” Maggie spits when she sees Alex, “that he needs to let me through.”

“I’ll handle it,” Alex tells Neal, who looks a little defeated but nods. “And you need to take it easy,” she says looking to Maggie.

“Take it easy?” Maggie says back. “There are police cruisers, Wally’s van and what is obviously the feds vehicles parked out front of Lucy’s place and your deputy won’t let me in or tell me what’s going on. You tell me how I’m supposed to take it easy.”

In all the years that Alex has known Maggie she can’t remember a time when she’s heard the other woman’s voice shake and crack. _She’s scared_, Alex tells herself.

“Lucy’s alright,” Alex promises her. “She found a body in the alley out back.”

“I need to see her,” Maggie says, some of the fear was gone from her voice but not all.

“I know,” Alex nods. “Come on,” she says as she gestures for Maggie to follow her.

“Thank you,” Maggie says as she follows Alex into Red’s.

Lucy is sitting at a table in the middle of the bar, elbows on the table and head in her hands, talking to Agent Olson.

“Lucy,” Maggie says, and she walks quickly around Alex. Lucy’s head comes up quickly and she stands from the chair. Without a word Lucy walks past Agent Olsen and straight into Maggie’s arms.

“Are you ok?” Maggie whispers to her, as she wraps her arms around Lucy, who holds tightly onto her.

“I don’t know,” Lucy says, and she sounds like she’s on the verge of tears. “I just went out to throw trash in the dumpster out back and he was just laying there.”

“It’s alright,” Maggie says in a soothing voice as she runs her hands up and down Lucy’s back. “You’re safe, that’s what matter.”

“His face,” Lucy whimpers. Maggie shoots Alex and look and she just nods in response.

“Ok,” Maggie says, not able to find words at the moment, “it’s ok. I’ve got you.”

At her words Lucy seems to try and pull her even closer.

“We’re going to need to talk to you too then,” Agent Olsen says after a moment.

“Me?” Maggie asks, truly surprised. “I just got here, I don’t know anything.”

“Where were you tonight?” Olsen asks.

“I was at the station, working with you,” Maggie spits back, “I’m the one that’s been helping you out.”

“Yea,” Olsen nods, “you also left the station a few hours ago.”

“You’re calling me a suspect?” Maggie asks in disbelief, her arms still around Lucy but her eyes locked on the agent in front of her.

“I’m just saying I need to know where you were,” Olsen says again.

“I went home,” Maggie says shortly, “ate dinner, like a normal person. I was at home until I came over here, like I do every night.”

“You’re here every night?” Olsen asks, raising an eyebrow in question.

“Agent,” Alex warns but Maggie cuts her off as Kara and Sam walk in.

“Yes, I come here every night and stay until close,” Maggie sneers. “To make sure Lucy closes up without any problems.”

“So, you were by yourself from the time you left here until just now?” Olsen asks with a passive voice.

“Yes,” Maggie sighs. “Unless you’d like to question my cat to verify my alibi.”

“How well did you know the victim?” Olsen asks instead.

“What victim?” Maggie asks, her eyes moving from Olson’s to Alex’s.

“Mark Smith,” Alex answers watching her friend. “In the alley out back.”

“Mark?” Maggie asks, surprise lacing her voice. “I don’t think I knew him any better than anyone else. He came here and got drunk and was an asshole.”

“You’ve had issues with him in the past?” Olsen cuts in and asks.

“Everyone in town did,” Maggie answers back and she can feel Lucy shudder in her arms, “Are we done here? I’d like to get her out of here.”

“Don’t go far,” is Olson’s response as he stuffs his small notepad into an interior pocket of his suit jacket.

“I live here,” Maggie says with a sneer at the agent. She turns her eyes to Alex and says, “Do you need her for anything else or can I take her home now?”

“We’re good for now,” Alex says with a sigh. “Go home, get some sleep. We’ll probably need to talk again tomorrow.”

Maggie nods and whispers to Lucy, “Ready to go?” Lucy’s response is to nod against Maggie’s chest.

They walk out and Alex turns to Olsen, “What the hell was that about?”

“Asking for an alibi is something we should be doing,” Olsen says simply.

“You did a little more than that,” Alex fires back, feeling her anger start to get the better of her. It’d already been a long day and she was in desperate need of some sleep, that she was not likely to get.

“Something we have to watch for is someone who inserts themselves into the investigation,” Olsen answers with a nod towards the door, “and she has.”

“She’s worked this case before,” Alex says, taking a step forward, “with me.”

“Years ago. She’s not law enforcement,” Olsen points out. “Plus, she just happens to turn up here right after we find a body.”

“She comes here every night around this time,” Alex growls. “I can’t believe you have the nerve to stand here and accuse my friend, the person that’s been helping us, of this. This is exactly why I didn’t want to,”

Alex stops herself short, knowing her temper is getting the better of her.

“Alright,” Sam says, coming to stand between the two, “we have a lot to get done tonight and we’re not going to get any of it done if we’re at each other’s throats. Olsen, why don’t you go outside and see about helping Henshaw and the Deputies collect evidence?”

Olsen nods, steps around Sam and Alex and heads back out the front door.

“Kara,” Alex says, looking past Sam to where her sister stands by the door. “Go with him and make sure he doesn’t start accusing anyone else of killing Mark.”

Kara simply nods and slips out the door without a sound.

Sam waits another moment before saying, “Deep breaths Alex.”

Alex just shakes her head in response, refusing to meet Sam’s eyes.

“Olsen can be a bit abrasive at times,” Sam offers. “One of the things that makes him good at interrogations. He gets straight to the point.”

“He accuses innocent people,” Alex says but finally manages that deep breath. “You’re all going to have to be a little more careful how you word things now.”

“What do you mean?” Sam asks as she leans against the bar beside where Alex stands.

“We were able to keep the first two bodies pretty much under wraps,” Alex explains, “Gossip in a small town can spread faster than wildfire. They were out of towners and found out in the woods.” Alex sighs loudly, allowing herself to deflate slight and lean against the bar as well. “Mark was a local and was killed in the middle of town. By morning everyone in town’s going to know.”

“Having the town on alert can work in our favor,” Sam offers.

“They’re also going to know you’re here,” Alex levels a look at her, causing Sam to crack a smile.

“We aren’t exactly low profile,” Sam allows with a nod.

“You kidding?” Alex chuckles shortly, “Between the two, rather large black SUVs parked out front and the suits, you scream federal agents.”

Sam tries to hold back a smile, but it fails, and she shakes her head, looking down at her clothes. A dark blue blouse tops her back slacks and black shoes. Her work clothes are a step down from Olsen, who she can’t recall having ever seen out of his suits.

“Guess the clothes aren’t always flattering,” she agrees looking back up at Alex.

“I didn’t say that,” Alex mumbles, looking down at the floor. She manages another deep breath, rubbing at her temple again, “We should get back out there. Wally will probably be taking the body soon and it’s going to take a while to process the alley.”

“It’s going to be along night,” Sam agrees with a nod.

**

“So, I wasn’t really planning on having guest,” Maggie explains as she unlocks and opens the door to her house she rents. Shortly after she had made the decision to stay in the small town, she had been lucky enough to find small place up for rent. The owner’s mother had recently passed away and they hadn’t wanted to sell the property outright.

The rent wasn’t much, the house had been paid off for years by the time Maggie had moved in, and Maggie found that the small house suited her well.

“I’m sure it’s fine,” Lucy says in a small voice and Maggie can’t help but worry.

“Come on in,” Maggie says as she steps inside, Lucy behind her. “Make yourself at home.”

Maggie slips her coat off and takes Lucy’s, hanging them up by the front door and heading into the living room. Lucy looks around as she follows Maggie into the room.

A simple, but comfortable looking couch sits along the opening from the entry way, leaving enough room to walk around either side. The flat screen TV is anchored to the wall in front of the couch, looking as though it was seldom used. Bookcases flank either side of the TV and are overflowing with books, a collection of varying types arranged across the them.

Tucked into the corner of the room was an old desk with a hutch. The shelves of the desk are filled with framed pictures, except the top shelf, which held a multi-level display case, holding numerous coins.

“I’ll make you some tea,” Maggie offers, and Lucy nods a thank you.

Lucy takes a seat on the couch and closes her eyes. Tonight, had been like every other Sunday in October. She’d had all the TVs in the bar tuned to the different football games playing and the regular crowd was gathered around the bar.

She’d noticed the trash had built up and figured she could take the short break to run it out back to the dumpster while the officials debated a call that had patrons yelling at the screens. She’d barely stepped out into the alley when she knew something was off.

There’s a blur of movement, causing Lucy to jump slightly, before she realizes that she is now face to face with a black cat, who is sitting on the coffee table directly in front of her.

“Um, hello,” Lucy says as the cat continues to stare at her, almost as though he’s trying to figure out who she is and why she’s in his house.

“Sergio, get off the table,” Maggie says as she walks back into the room, two coffee mugs in hand. The listens and jumps from the table to floor and wonders away. “He knows he’s not supposed to be on the table,” Maggie adds with a chuckle. “Here you go,” Maggie says as she sets a mug of steaming liquid down in front of her. Maggie takes a seat beside her, her own mug in her hands.

“Thank you,” Lucy says with a small smile. “For everything.”

Maggie shrugs, “I didn’t think you’d want to stay at the bar tonight.”

Lucy laughs shortly, “No, not at all. Do you think whoever did this was in my bar?”

Maggie hesitates, “I don’t know,” she admits with a sigh. “Was there anyone there that seemed angry enough to do something like that?”

Lucy shakes her head, “Agent Olsen asked me that too. I have no idea.”

“Alright, let’s just try to forget it for tonight,” Maggie says, resting a hand on Lucy’s leg.

“I wish I could,” Lucy sighs, “Every time I close my eyes, I see Mark’s face.”

“I know,” Maggie sighs, and when Lucy looks at her, she shrugs. “Being a corpsman in the Navy, you tend to see some unforgettable things.”

“God, I can’t imagine,” Lucy says, “just seeing him like that. I don’t want to think about what something like combat looks like.”

“Not always pretty,” Maggie agrees with a nod.

“How do you stop seeing it when you close your eyes?” Lucy asks, looking at the woman beside her.

“Sometimes I don’t,” Maggie admits, with a nod she stands up and grabs one of the framed pictures from her desk. She brings it with her and sits back beside Lucy, handing it to her. In the picture is laughing Maggie along with three other people, all dressed in military uniforms. Despite the backdrop of the picture, which if Lucy had to guess was a desert, they were all smiling and laughing.

“Is that Alex?” Lucy asks, pointing to the soldier standing next to Maggie. Her arm was around Maggie’s shoulder and she was smiling ear to ear, dark sunglasses covering her eyes.

“Yea,” Maggie nods. “This one was taken close to the end of our tour together.”

“Right before she got hurt?” Lucy ask looking away from the picture and back to Maggie.

“Couple of weeks, yea,” Maggie nods. “We’d been back at the forward base for a few days and the unit that had just gotten into country challenged us to a football game,” Maggie smiles at the memories. “We won of course. Turns out being deployed with a few people from middle of nowhere is a good thing when it comes to football.”

“The yearly Thanksgiving football game,” Lucy smile is small but at least it’s there.

“Right,” Maggie nods. “Needless to say, we kicked ass. It was a good day.”

“At least you guys were able to have good days there too,” Lucy says, handing the picture back to Maggie.

“Some were better than others,” Maggie sighs as she places the picture on the coffee table in front of them. “It was tough over there after Alex got sent home.”

“How long were you there after that?” Lucy asks, she rests her elbows on her knees and leans her head against them.

“Two months,” Maggie sighs.

“You’ve never told me about it,” Lucy says as she watches Maggie. “You know you don’t have to talk about it.”

“I know,” Maggie nods, “but if you’re going to stay here, you deserve to know.”

“Ok,” Lucy says softly, reaching out and taking Maggie’s hand.

Maggie stays quiet for a few more minutes, then lets out a deep breath and says, “Well, damn. Didn’t think this would be so hard.”

“It’s alright,” Lucy tries to sound reassuring. “We don’t need to talk about it.”

“No, we do,” Maggie shakes her head. “It’s just, other than cracking jokes about it, I haven’t really talk about it since I got hurt.” Maggie lets out a short, humorless laugh. “We, uh, we were in a little village south of Kandahar when our convey was hit. IED took out our lead vehicle, we had causalities and I got out of my vehicle to try and get to them,” Maggie stops, her eyes taking on a far away look. “I didn’t make it to them before an RPG went off right in front of me, knocked me back a few feet. I don’t remember everything about it, guess I hit my head.”

Lucy gently squeezes Maggie’s hand in response.

“Next thing I remember I’m waking up in a field hospital,” Maggie continues. “My head and my leg were bandaged, and they told me I was getting sent state side because my leg required more than they could do for it there.”

“How bad was it?” Lucy asks, Maggie had never talked about her injury before.

“Pretty bad,” Maggie nods her head, looking down at the floor. “Six surgeries to try and repair the damage, but,” Maggie pauses then reaches down and pulls up the left leg of her pant, revealing a prosthetic lower leg. “They weren’t able to repair all the damage, so, yea. Bye, bye leg.”

“Maggie,” Lucy says in a whisper. “I had no idea.”

“Only one here that does is Alex,” Maggie nods, letting the pant leg slide back down, “and the Captain, but I figured he should know.”

“How much did you lose?” Lucy asks, still a bit shocked by the revelation.

“About midway between my knee and ankle,” Maggie answers. “Doesn’t bother me as much now as it used to. The whole phantom limb pain thing is real, but it’s gotten better over time.”

“God, Maggie, I don’t even know what to say,” Lucy admits after a moment passes.

“There’s really nothing to say,” she shrugs. “You’ve known me for four years now, I just figured it was time you knew.”

Lucy swallows and says, “Thank you, for trusting me with like this.”

“Well, you trust me,” Maggie offers her a smile. “Even after the fed was acting like I did something wrong.”

At that Lucy can’t help but snort a laugh, and she lifts her hand to cover her mouth.

“Sorry,” she says with a smile. “Even if I didn’t know about that,” Lucy says, looking at Maggie’s leg briefly, “I know you’re not a murderer.”

“Well I’m glad you’re still on my side,” Maggie smiles.

“You know Alex is too,” Lucy says as she puts her hand on Maggie’s knee.

“I do,” Maggie nods her agreement. “Doesn’t make it any less frustrating.”

“I’d guess not,” Lucy says in understanding. “You realize that this is the first time we’ve spent time together outside my bar?”

“Guess you’re right,” Maggie says with a smile. “I would of preferred it be under better circumstances.”

“Well, yea,” Lucy agrees as she leans an arm against the back of the couch, resting her head against it and watching Maggie. “I’m glad we finally are though. You have been flirting with me for years after all.”

Maggie chuckles at that and Lucy does not miss the blush that creeps up her neck.

“Did I actually manage to embarrass you?” Lucy asks, trying to hold back a smile.

“Maybe a little,” Maggie admits, trying to hide it behind a smile. “I, uh, should go make sure the guest bedroom is all set for you,” she says as she comes to her feet.

“Maggie,” Lucy says as she reaches out and takes Maggie’s hand before the other woman can walk away. Lucy hesitates then decides on, “Thank you, for all this.”

“Absolutely,” Maggie says with a smile, she gives Lucy’s hand a small squeeze then heads upstairs without another word.

**

It was closing in on midnight and Alex found herself, once again, in the basement of the County Building, waiting for Wally to give her some kind of answer. The older man was hunched over the exam table in the center of the room, deep in concentration as he looked over the body in front of him.

“I’ll do a complete autopsy in the morning,” Wally told her as he carefully dusted the area around Mark’s jaw, looking for fingerprints.

“I know,” was Alex’s short answer, she stood in the corner of the room, waiting.

“We’re hoping we get lucky and find fingerprints or other trace,” Agent Arias offers from her position, opposite Wally. “This wasn’t one of his ritual killings, he got angry and, hopefully, sloppy.”

“I hope you’re right,” Wally mumbles as he continues to search, “but I’m not finding any fingerprints here.” He sighs, setting down the magnifying glass he had been using, “I’m not surprised. With this much damage I doubt we’ll find prints. I’ll run trace and see what we get. If this was done bare handed, we’ll be able to find DNA all over him.”

“Thank you, Dr. Norris,” Sam says with a smile as she takes a step back from the table.

Wally smiles at Alex and says, “I like her. Can we keep her?”

Alex chuckles but shakes her head, “I think the government might coming looking for her if we tried that Wally.”

The older man chuckles but nods his head in agreement, “You’re probably right. Besides,” he says with a smile at Sam, “I don’t think life here is exciting enough for someone with your talents.”

Sam laughs lightly, “Some peace and quiet is sometimes nice, and the air here is amazing. It smells so fresh.”

“It’s the mountains,” Wally explains as he steps around the exam table, “and the elevation. Makes the air crisper and fresh. It’s good for you.”

“Alright Wally,” Alex smiles. “No more sweet talking. I think we all need some rest.”

Wally sighs but nods, “True. I’ll finish collecting what I can tonight and then I’ll be back in tomorrow.”

“I’ll be here,” Alex nods.

“Oh, I know,” Wally gives her a sad look. “Try and get some sleep between now and then.”

“Will do,” Alex gives him a small wave as she and Sam leave the small office area and head down the hall leading to the main door.

They step outside into the cold night air without a word and Alex stops on the sidewalk. The county building sits almost in the center of town, and Alex takes a moment to look around.

“You can’t blame yourself for what happened tonight,” Sam says into the quiet.

Alex can’t help the short chuckle that escapes her at that moment, “You do that all the time? Profile everyone?”

Sam smiles and answers, “Hazard of the job I guess.” She hesitates then adds, “I was just thinking about what you said about Henshaw and how a person gets a certain look after they’ve lost people. You have that look.”

Alex lets out a sad chuckle and nods, “Fair enough.” Alex sighs, “Do you know how many people have died in Bella Rosa in the last ten years, from something other than natural causes?”

“I’m guessing not many,” Sam says as she looks down at the sidewalk, already knowing where the conversation is heading.

“Three,” Alex answers with a sigh, “Roads around here get rough in the winter and if you’re not used to them, well. Three fatal car accidents in ten years. Other than that,” Alex shrugs. “No deaths. Murder just isn’t common in a town like this.”

“Mark’s death is not your fault,” Sam says again. “There’s no way you could have known this was going to happen, and if you did, you would have stopped it.”

“Three days, three bodies,” Alex mutters into the air. “I’d thought I’d left this kind of thing behind me.”

“There’s no way of knowing when and where a serial killer will be,” Sam offers. “Even if they are local, there’s a chance you’d never see it coming.”

“I’m the Sheriff,” Alex says, shifting her shoulders under her coat, as though the weight of the patch on her shoulder has suddenly become heavy. “I’m supposed to keep them all safe.”

“From what I’ve seen,” Sam says, taking a step closer to Alex, “you’ve been doing one hell of a good job.”

“I’ve barely been Sheriff two years,” Alex sighs, “and I’ve lost more people than we’ve lost since….”

“Since your father,” Sam offers with a sad smile. When Alex levels a look at her she shrugs, “I do my research.”

“That doesn’t really surprise me,” Alex offers a small smile. “How much do you know?”

“Just what was in the official file,” Sam answers simply, “but I’m guessing there’s more to it.”

“There usually is,” Alex agrees. She shakes her head at herself but then looks at Sam, locking eyes, trying to see if there is an ulterior motive there. Alex’s surprised when all she sees there is genuine concern.

“Not here,” Alex says after a moment passes. “I’ll tell you, but not here.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alex talks to Sam about her father, Lucy spends the night at Maggie's and Lena offers to help.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We get a little more back story in this chapter for Lena and learn about Alex and Kara's father.

Twenty minutes later Alex quietly opens the front door of her house, knowing that Kara came home hours ago and was probably asleep upstairs with Lena and Emma. Scout happily trots down the stairs, tail wagging and greets Alex in the entry way. When the dog realizes Alex has brought a guest with her, he pushes past her and go straight to Sam.

“Hope you don’t mind dogs,” Alex smiles as the furry goofball gives Sam a once over.

“Not at all,” Sam smiles as she crouches down so Scout can continue sniffing her. “I’ve been thinking about getting the kids a dog.”

“Scout’s good with kids,” Alex smiles, “but he leaves a lot to be desired in the guard dog category.”

“You’re a good boy huh,” Sam says as she pets the dog under his chin, causing his tail to wag.

“Now that you’ve cleared security,” Alex says with a chuckle, “we can talk in the office.”

As Alex turns and heads further into the house, Scout turns and follows happily behind her, tail wagging the entire time. Sam smiles and follows, when they walk into a room filled with bookshelves, she can’t help but look around.

“You have quite the collection,” Sam observes as her eyes search the shelves behind the desk.

Alex takes a seat at the desk with a lopsided smile, “Comes in handy when the insomnia kicks in.”

Sam nods her agreement as she takes a seat in front of the desk, “You have a nice home Sheriff.”

Alex chuckles tiredly then says, “You know, I get called Sheriff more then I get called my actual name. I keep thinking, one of these days I’m going to forget who I am without this job.”

“It can be very easy to get caught up in our work,” Sam nods, knowing full well what Alex means. “I’m lucky in that, when I go home my kids are there to remind me that I’m more than just my job.”

Alex nods, “I keep telling Kara that she needs to make sure she doesn’t lose sight of what she has at home. That, in the long run, Lena and Emma are what’s going to keep her sane. They’re what keeps her, her.”

“That’s good advice,” Sam nods. “What do you use? To keep yourself sane.”

“When I find it, I’ll let you know,” Alex smiles at her. It’s a warm smile but beneath it Sam can see a woman that’s haunted by the things she can’t change.

“Until then,” Sam sighs, knowing now is not the right time to bring up the pain in the other woman’s eyes, “you were going to tell me about the case your father worked on.”

“Died on,” Alex corrects as she pulls open the bottom drawer of her desk and removes a heavy file. Setting it do on her desk she slides it over to Sam.

“Right, I’m sorry,” Sam says as she picks up the file. It’s larger than even most of the files she receives working for the bureau. She flips it opens and is met with photographs of multiple crime scenes. Four different women, each one with clear lacerations across their necks, stared up from the pictures taken by the Coroner’s Office, Wally if Sam had to guess.

These pictures had been included with the official report that was kept in Washington, along with a set of two pictures from each crime scene. Since the case was more than twenty years old detailed records weren’t kept on hand anymore.

As Sam moves through the pictures, she’s already familiar with she starts to come across ones she’s never seen before. The pictures are all from the scenes, and as she moves through them, they become closer and more detailed, all of them of the victims. The pictures end was up close shots of the victims’ faces, centered around their eyes.

With each victim the pictures became more intense and focused on the women, on the expressions on their faces and the dead gaze in their eyes.

“Who processed the scenes?” Sam asked after reviewing the file.

“We still had a forensic unit back then,” Alex offers as she watches the other woman study the file. “They did a lot of it.”

“Who photographed the scenes?” Sam asks, looking at one of the last pictures in the file, an up close shot of a woman, blonde hair darkened by the pool of blood she lays in.

Alex hesitates, “My father.”

“He took all of them?” Sam asks, looking up from the file.

“He didn’t trust anyone else to do them,” Alex answers with a sigh.

Sam watches Alex a moment, trying to decide on her next words. Alex has brought Sam into her home and offered to share this information with her and Sam doesn’t want to say something that could threaten the tentative friendship she has with the other woman.

“The picture, they, uh, they’re taken from unique angles,” Sam offers as she looks back down to the file in her lap. “He was,” Sam stops but Alex cuts her off.

“Obsessed,” Alex inserts. When Sam raises her eyes to meet Alex’s there is a sad look in her eyes. “My brother went missing a year before the first murder happened,” Alex explains. “Just disappeared one day after school.” Alex sighs but continues, “After that, my father rarely came home. He’d spend nights at the station, sleeping on that couch in my office. When these cases came along, it was all he could think about.”

“Losing a child can take a toll on any parent,” Sam offers softly, closing the file.

“He changed so much,” Alex mutters. “He didn’t want to call the FBI in, said they’d take over the case and block him out.”

“How’d they end up getting involved?” Sam asks.

“Wally actually,” Alex says with just the hint of a smile. “When the fourth body was found he decided help was needed and he sent a request in.”

“That is a bit unorthodox,” Sam allows. “We don’t usually come unless the law enforcement official in charge asks. Helps to keep things from turning into a pissing match between us and them.”

“Isn’t that your job?” Alex asks, this time her smile nearly reaches her eyes.

Sam smiles and with a nod says, “In general terms, yes. That’s why I talk directly to the official in charge. If they can put a voice to us, we’re not the ‘nameless, faceless government’ anymore.”

“You’re not nameless,” Alex offers, “or faceless.” She pauses but then continues, “My father fought them every step of the way. Wouldn’t let them collect evidence and told everyone in town not to talk with them.”

“I’m sure that only hurt the investigation,” Sam nods understandingly. That had been the kind of thing that brought about the creation of her position in the first place.

“It did,” Alex nods with a solemn look on her face. “They weren’t getting anywhere, and another body showed up.” Alex sighs heavily and rub her temple hard, the headache from earlier had only managed to get worse the longer the night went. “He took it personally and went out, following a lead he’d found.”

“He went out by himself?” Sam asks, lifting an eyebrow in questions.

“He’d gotten to the point where he didn’t trust his own Deputies,” Alex answers with a sad shake of her head. “Bill is the only one from then that’s still on the force. He told me how bad things had gotten, and how lost my father seemed. Anyway, he took off after this lead. There was a guy that had moved into a house near the edge of town, no one really knew anything about him, and my father decided he wanted to talk to him.”

“He didn’t tell anyone where he was going,” Sam says. She doesn’t phase it as a question, she already knows the answer.

Alex shakes her head in answer, “He started asking the guy questions, apparently enough that he figured out he was going to get caught. He stabbed my father,” Alex says with just the tiniest shake of her head. Even though she knew what had happened for years now, saying it out loud was not something she had done more then a few times. “Left him for dead in his house and took off. What no one knew at the time was that he had already kidnapped another girl, who was tied up in the trunk of his car.”

When Alex stops Sam decides to fill in what she knows, “Your father managed to hit his distress button on his radio and slipped it into the suspects pocket when he was stabbed. They traced it and found him and saved the girl he had taken.”

“Yea,” Alex nods, “caught him and saved the girl.”

Sam flips the file to the back, to the images she had not seen before, images of Alex’s father. He laid in the middle of a nondescript room, blood pooled around him, his eyes open as if staring after his murderer. The pictures were chilling, Alex looks so much like her father, especially when you take in to account the near identical uniform she currently wears.

“Your father was a hero,” Sam offers into the silence that followed.

“My father was an idiot,” Alex corrects. “If he hadn’t been obsessed and paranoid, he probably would still be alive.”

Sam weighs her words, “That may be true, but we can’t know that.” She takes a moment then adds, “Something like losing your brother, that’s not a thing some people can handle well. Becoming this level of obsessed though, well, to be honest it’s pretty bad.”

“I know,” Alex sighs and her eyes meet Sam. There’s an unspoken question in the Sheriff’s eyes and Sam finds herself hesitating before asking her next question.

“How long have you had this file in your desk here?” Sam asks as she lift the file slightly.

“Since I became a Deputy and found it,” Alex answers, keeping her eyes on Sam, “Nine years.”

Sam nods, “And how often do you look at it?”

“I’ve looked at it twice,” Alex explains, “Once when I first found it and once three days ago, after we found the first body.”

Sam nods, setting the file back in the edge of Alex’s desk, “Sheriff, I think it’s safe to say that we aren’t going to have issues like before.”

Alex nods and Sam notices just the slightly change to her posture, she relaxes just a bit.

“Thank you,” Alex says with a sigh. “If you want, I can take you to your hotel. We probably both need at get as much sleep as possible.”

“You’re probably right,” Sam agrees with a tired nod. “We’ll present our profile tomorrow after the autopsy and hopefully we’ll have a pile of evidence from tonight’s crime scene to go through.” Sam sighs and adds, “I hate to make you drive back into town just to drop me off.”

“It’s not that far,” Alex says with a shrug. “Only other options is the guest room downstairs.”

“You have a guest room in your basement?” Sam asks with a smile and a raised eyebrow.

“When you put it like that, it does sound a little creepy,” Alex chuckles. “A few years ago, I finished the basement and turned it into a guest room kind of deal. It’s more like a miniature apartment, mainly for when Mom wants to stay over. Gives her, her own little place, mainly during the holidays.”

“You turned your basement into a guest house for your mother?” Sam asks, lifting a questioning eyebrow. When Alex simply shrugs Sam laughs and says, “You, Sheriff, are almost too good to be true.”

“Alex,” she replies and when Sam looks confused, she continues, “Call me Alex, please. At least when it’s just the two of us and we’re not working.”

“Alright,” Sam smiles at her, “Alex, you do seem too good to be true.”

Alex can’t help but laugh at that, “While I appreciate the compliment, believe me when I say that is far from true.”

“Well, from what I’ve seen, you’re leaps and bound better than anything I’ve ever met, or dated for that matter,” Sam shrugs, “but then, some people are better at hiding their flaws than others.”

“Sounds like you’re speaking from personal experience,” Alex says as she rests back in her chair.

“Unfortunately, I am,” Sam nods with a sigh, “personal experience and a few years doing this job and you get to see just how good people are at hiding their true selves.”

“That is true,” Alex nods understandingly. “How about I get you back to your hotel and we both call it a night,” Alex offers, knowing that some conversations are best left for a time not in the middle of the night.

“That sounds like a wonderful idea,” Sam groans, making Alex laugh. “The time difference here is just enough to mess with me.”

Alex chuckles as she stands up from her desk, stretching her arms above her head, feeling rewarded when both of her shoulders pop. “That it is,” Alex agrees with a nod.  
**  
Maggie had finally managed to close her eyes when there was a soft knock on her bedroom door. Caught off guard, she sits straight up in bed, taking a second to collect herself before she remembers she has a house guest.

“Yea,” Maggie answers then clears her throat, “Come in.”

The door creaks open slowly, and Maggie can just make out Lucy standing at the door. The hallway light is off behind her and with Maggie’s bedroom light also off the only light in the house is what filters in from the streetlight in front of her house.

“Did I wake you?” Lucy asks quietly from her spot by the door.

“It’s fine,” Maggie says with a slight shake of her head. “Are you ok?” she asks, as her eyes begin to readjust to the dark. Maggie turns so that her legs dangle over the side of the bed.

“I’m,” Lucy starts but then stops, “I can’t sleep. Every time I….”

“It’s ok,” Maggie says, “Come on in and sit down. I’d come to you but,” she gestures to the prosthetic leg sitting beside her bed, “that thing is a pain.”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Lucy says, taking a step backwards. “I didn’t think.”

“Lucy,” Maggie says with a chuckle, “It’s not a big deal. Please come in and sit down.”

The other woman hesitates a moment before walking into the room and closing the door behind her. She takes the few short steps until she’s standing next to Maggie’s bed.

“I promise I won’t bite,” Maggie offers with a grin, to which Lucy rolls her eyes but does sit down next to her on the bed.

“I feel foolish,” Lucy sighs after a moment.

“Don’t,” Maggie offers. “Everyone handles nights like this different. Not sleeping is not the worse way.”

“Guess the option to go get drunk isn’t really there,” Lucy chuckles darkly.

“The downside to being the only real bar in town,” Maggie agrees. A moment passes and Maggie asks, “Having trouble closing your eyes?”

Lucy nods her head in answers but stays quiet.

“First night is always the hardest,” Maggie nods with a sigh.

“What if whoever did this comes back?” Lucy asks in a low voice.

Maggie pauses before she answers, “Well, for starters, you’re here and not at the bar. That should help some, pretty much no one will come here looking for you.”

“Guess that’s a good point,” Lucy allows.

“And,” Maggie says with a grin, “even if someone did, we have a guard cat.”

At that Lucy can’t stop the laughter that bubbles up and out of her.

“Hey, he takes his guard responsibilities seriously,” Maggie says, mocking seriousness while smiling wide. “He did give you a once over when you first came in.”

“He did,” Lucy nods, still laughing. Once her laughter subsides, she sighs and leans over, resting her head on Maggie’s bare shoulder. It wasn’t until then that Lucy realizes the other woman is wearing a tank top and sleep pants.

“Do you want to stay in here tonight?” Maggie asks after they sit in silence for several minutes.

Lucy nods, her head moving slightly against Maggie’s shoulder, “If that’s ok.”

“It’s fine,” Maggie answers then chuckles. “You know half the people in this town already think we’re sleeping together?”

Lucy lifts her head from Maggie’s shoulder and looks at her, “Are you being serious?”

“Yea,” Maggie nods, quirking an eyebrow at her. “How do you not know that? Doesn’t the town bartender hear all the gossip?”

“Apparently not,” Lucy shakes her head. “I guess they decided that they didn’t want to gossip with me about me.” Lucy chuckles, “You know it’s your fault?”

“What?” Maggie asks.

“You’ve been flirting with me since you moved to town,” Lucy answers with a laugh. “I may have been encouraging you though, so I may be partly to blame as well,” Lucy offers with a smile.

Maggie laughs, “Well, at least you admit to playing a part in the game.”

Lucy turns serious, biting her lower lip, and sighs, “Can I asks you a serious question?”

“Sure,” Maggie shrugs lightly. “You’re sitting in my bed in the dead of night. I think we can ask each other serious questions.”

Lucy hesitates then asks, “Was it always a game? The flirting I mean.”

Maggie is silent for a moment and Lucy can tell the other woman is deciding how to answer. She could easily laugh it off, make a joke and avoid the answer. To be honest this is what Lucy expects her to do. In all the years she’s spent getting to know the medic, she knows that she’ll avoid serious answers about relationships above most other things.

“At first,” Maggie says after a long moment passes, “I think maybe it was.”

“Just at first?” Lucy asks watching Maggie’s face in the dark room.

Maggie nods her head, “Yea but it hasn’t been a game, not with you, for a really long time.”

“You haven’t,” Lucy starts but stops and rethinks her words. “You’ve never done anything other than flirt with me.”

Maggie chuckles shortly and answers, “I’m kind of a giant mess Lucy. If I make it through the night with only waking up half a dozen times, it’s a good night.” Maggie lets out a sad laugh and gestures to her leg, “Not to mention the fact that I’m literally a leg short of everyone else around here.”

“You think I care about that?” Lucy asks gently laying her hand on Maggie’s knee.

“No,” Maggie answers honestly, turning her head to look at Lucy, “but I think you should.”

“Well I don’t,” Lucy says firmly. “I care about you.”

“Lucy,” Maggie says and there is desperation in her voice now, “You deserve,” Maggie starts but is stopped when Lucy places a finger on her lips.

“What I deserve,” Lucy says in a low voice, leaning closer, “Is what I want, who I want.”

Maggie shakes her head and starts to look away, but Lucy takes the finger from her lips and gently cups Maggie’s cheek with it. She gently turns the other woman’s head until she’s looking at her again.

“I want you,” Lucy say softly just a few inches from Maggie’s lips.

“Lucy,” Maggie says in a near whisper.

Before she has the chance to say anything else Lucy closes the distance between them and places her lips against Maggie’s.

Maggie breaths in sharply and for a moment Lucy is afraid she’ll pull away, shut her out like she’s feared.

Much to Lucy’s surprise, Maggie’s hands come up and find her waist, pulling her closer and deepening the kiss. Lucy can’t help but smile into the kiss as she wraps her arm around Maggie’s neck. That smile turns into a laugh as Maggie pulls her from her spot on the edge of the bed and into her lap, Lucy snaking both arms around the other woman’s neck.

“Guess I shouldn’t have waited so long,” Maggie says with a big smile.

“Shut up,” Lucy smiles back at her, running a hand through her lose hair and leaning back in to kiss Maggie again.

**

It was seven in the morning when Sam walks into the Sheriff’s station, surprised to find that she was the first one from her team there. The late night prior was probably to blame, it’d taken here another hour after Alex had dropped her off at the hotel before she was able to sleep.

She wasn’t surprised when she walked through the gate and noticed that the lights were on in Alex’s office. Sam sighs as she heads towards the warm light, she had been expecting this, hence the two coffees she carries.

When she reaches the doorway to the office she leans against the doorjamb. Sure enough, Alex sits at her desk, looking over some report Sam can’t make out form here.

“Please tell me you went home and got some sleep,” Sam asks after a moment.

If she startles the other woman she can’t tell and Alex looks up at her with a smile.

“I did,” she nods as she leans back in her chair. “Managed three hours actually.”

“I’m impressed,” Sam smiles, “I brought this, just in case.” She steps into the office and places one of the to go coffee cups on Alex’s desk.

“I could use it,” Alex nods as she reaches out and picks up the cup and takes a sip. “How’d you guess my order?”

“I didn’t need to,” Sam admits with a sigh. “I stopped in at the diner and ordered two. When I told the lady behind the counter that I was getting one for you, she knew exactly how you like it.”

“Benefits of a small town,” Alex chuckles, “I never have to worry about getting coffee.”

“She also asked me about what happened last night,” Sam tells her. “Downside to a small town.”

Alex sighs, “I didn’t really think it’d stay quiet after last night.”

“It changes things, when a local is a victim,” Sam acknowledges with a nod. “There may have been rumors before about what was happening, but there’s no real way to cover it up now.”

“This can work in our advantage though, right?” Alex ask running a hand through her hair. “Everyone will be on guard now.”

“They will,” Sam nods, “but our unsub may start to feel like he’s losing ground.”

“What could happen?” Alex asks with just a hint of worry in her voice. Sam knows that the other woman carries the weight of the town on her shoulders and, in moments like these, it shows.

Sam sighs but answers, “He could escalate, and the killings could get worse, or he could go underground and the trail could go cold.”

Alex in silent and Sam can feel the tension building in the Sheriff.

“Let us present our profile Sheriff,” Sam says, switching back to sounding a bit more formal, “and we’ll go from there.”

Alex nods her head, looking up to meet Sam’s eyes, “Thank you Agent Arias. I’ll make sure all the Deputies are here.”

“We’ll be ready,” Sam nods as she takes a step back and heads for the conference room. She swings open the door and flips the light switch, illumining the room in harsh light.

With a tired sigh she sets her bag down on the far end of the table, knowing she has some time before the other in her team arrive, she sets up and gets to work.

It’s almost an hour later before the door to the conference room opens again and Sam looks up. She’s surprised to see, not one of her team members, but Lena walk in.

“Morning,” Lena says with a small smile.

“Good morning,” Sam returns the greeting, “I wasn’t expecting to see you this morning.”

“No, I can’t imagine you were,” Lena says as she pulls out the chair across from Sam and sits. “I’m here to offer some help.”

“I’m sorry,” Sam says, shaking her head slightly in confusion, “I don’t think I understand.”

“I have a, shall we say, history that could be useful,” Lena answers as Kara walks into the room.

“Alright,” Sam says slowly as she watches Kara set her bag on the table and take the seat next to her wife. “Agent Henshaw isn’t here yet.”

“That’s alright,” Kara nods, “I thought it might be better if we talked with you first.”

“Ok,” Sam says and closes her laptop.

Kara reaches over and takes Lena’s hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

Lena takes a deep breath before saying, “My maiden name is Walsh. I changed my last name when I moved here, took my aunt’s married name of Luthor. My father was Joseph Arnold Walsh, I grew up in Wexford.”

It takes a moment for the name and place to register in Sam’s mind but when they do her eyebrows lift in question.

“Your father is Joseph Walsh?” she asks to which Lena nods once, “You’re saying that your father is The Wexford Poet?” Again, Lena nods. “Your father’s a serial killer?”

“Yes,” Lena answers. “Something I wasn’t aware of growing up.’

“I guess not,” Sam says softly. She looks to Kara, “I take it you’ve known this for a while?”

“Since high school,” Kara nods, “She told me a few months after she moved here.”

“Who else knows?” Sam asks looking back to Lena.

“Here, just Kara and Alex,” Lena answers with sigh.

“When did you,” Sam pauses to collect her thoughts. “When did you find out?”

“Three weeks after my sixteenth birthday,” Lena answers matter of factly. “May 24th.”

Sam takes another moment to run what facts she knows about that case through her mind, “He wasn’t apprehended until late November.”

“Yea,” Lena says in a low voice. Kara gives her hand another reassuring squeeze and she continues, “Three weeks after my sixteenth birthday I came home from school, the house was dark and I couldn’t find my father. That wasn’t unusually,” Lena huffs a short laugh. “He spent a lot of time down in our cellar, said he was working or something. I never went down there.” Lena stops and shakes her head, she lifts her hand and presses it against her forehead. “I still don’t know why I decided to go down there that day, but I thought I’d go see if I could find him, call him for dinner.”

“It’s ok if you can’t,” Sam offers in a soft voice. After years of working with victim and witnesses of horrific events Sam knew that the more you pushed them, the harder it sometimes was for them to remember accurately.

“It’s alright,” Lena says. “When I got down the stairs, it was dark, and I was feeling along the wall for a light switch. I found one and switched it on. The cellar lit up so bright that for a moment I couldn’t see.” Lena swallows hard and continues, “The floor, he’d finished it or something, because I remember how hard it was, concrete, I think. But there was a woman, laying in the corner, all curled up in a ball. I started to walk over to her, to ask if she was alright but she flinched away from me, screamed like I was going to hurt her.

“I stopped, tried ask her what her name was. That was when I realized there was a chain attached to her, around her ankle, that was locked to the wall of our cellar. Someone had locked her to the wall in our cellar,” Lena’s voice grows thick and she does her best to clear it before she keeps going. “I think I went into some kind of shock when I realized what was going on, things went kind of fuzzy. I turned to run for help, but he was there. Standing at the top of the steps to the cellar, my father.”

Lena stops again, tears streaming down her face.

“Alright,” Kara says, her voice sounding firm. “That’s enough.”

“I’m ok,” Lena says, though her voice would suggest otherwise.

“If we need to stop,” Sam starts to offer but stops when Lena shakes her head.

“I’m fine,” Lena says, forcing a smile. “If I don’t get this out now, I may not at all.”

“Alright,” Sam nods, glancing at Kara who does not seem happy about the idea, but gives a small nod.

“He must have knocked me out or something,” Lena carries on, “because the next thing I remember is waking up on the floor of the cellar with a shackle around my ankle. The woman wasn’t in the corner anymore, she was,” Lena hesitates but pushes on, “she was on a table along the far wall. My father was…when he realized I was awake he started telling me what he was doing, why, what he thought it meant.

“After he finished with her, he left. Left me alone with her body, for three days, before he came back and took her. I still don’t know where he took her. I’m not sure how long I was down there before he came back, but when he did, he had another girl with him. He chained her up next to me and spent, I don’t know how many days explaining to me all the reasons behind what he was doing.

“It was like he wanted me to understand,” Lena says, her voice still carrying the disbelief after all the years. “That happened for the next six months. He brought in two other girls after that, tortured them and killed them in front of me.”

Lena stops and the room stays quiet for several long minutes, Sam analyzing everything she’d just heard and Kara, rubbing Lena’s back reassuringly.

“Ok,” Sam finally says, as she pulls a tablet and pen from her bag, “If you feel up to it, we can talk about what it was like growing up, what living with him was like. It could give us a better look into the mind of someone that kidnaps and tortures.”

“I can do that,” Lena says, taking a deep breath.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys liked this chapter. Feel free to reach out and say hi over on tumblr, I also love all of your comments!!!


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team is ready to deliver their profile

“I appreciate everything you did earlier,” Kara says as she takes the seat next to Sam a little before nine. They’d spent more time talking but, following Sam’s suggestion, Kara had walked Lena out to their vehicle before the rest of the team arrived. 

“Don’t mention it,” Sam says with a small smile. “It means something that she wants to help after everything that’s happened to her. The least I can do is make sure she doesn’t get any more drug into this mess than she already is.”

“I feel bad,” Kara admits with a frown, “I knew I wanted to join the BAU back before I met her, it was always something I wanted. I never imagined I’d fall in love with a woman that’d been through that kind of hell.”

“Best loves are the most unexpected ones, or so I hear,” Sam chuckles. 

Their conversation ends as Alex and Agent Henshaw step out of the Sheriff’s office. Sam looks around the room at everyone assembled. The BAU was about to present their profile of the unsub to the Sheriff and the Deputies.

“How many Deputies are there here?” Sam asks as she takes a quick head count. 

“Thirteen,” Kara answers quickly, “Twelve with Darrell being on suspension.”

“So, with working twelve hour shifts, that makes only three Deputies on duty at a time,” Sam realizes. “That hardly seems like enough.”

“Small place,” Kara answers with a shrug, “Plus they’ve been understaffed here since I was a kid.”

“Small population, I can understand, but the county’s so big,” Sam says with a sigh, “I don’t see how they cover it all.”

“They don’t,” Kara answers honestly. “They do the best they can, but they’re stretched thin. Part of the reason Alex works so many extra shifts. She thinks it’s her responsibility to fix something that’s been broken for years.”

Sam doesn’t miss the touch of bitterness in Kara’s voice. 

She doesn’t get the chance to say anything else before Alex clears her throat, getting everyone’s attention.

“You all know about the two bodies found in the woods just outside of town,” Alex starts off, “and about Marcus Smith. Agent Henshaw,” Alex says gesturing to the man beside her, “and his team are here to give us a hand in figuring out who could have done this.”

Agent Henshaw a small nod, “Thank you Sheriff Danvers. I want to start off by saying that we aren’t here to take over this investigation. We’re here to offer help and support. We’ve put together a profile of the unsub.”

“Tell me why we should trust you and your profile,” Bill speaks up from the back of the room.

“Bill,” Alex says with just a hint of surprise in her voice, “they’re here because I asked them to be.”

“With all do respect Sheriff,” Bill says, “we all know that the reason they’re here is because of your sister.” 

Most of the eyes in the room shift from Alex to Kara, who keep her face impassive, showing no signs of caring that all eyes were on her. 

“They’re here,” Alex says, keeping her voice level as she crosses her arms over her chest, “because I asked them to be here.”

“And the last time the FBI was here,” Bill continues, “we lost our Sheriff. I don’t want to sit here and watch history repeat itself.”

Alex’s face turns to stone and her eyes become cold as she looks at Bill, “This time is different. I’m not my father, I won’t make the same mistakes.”

“I don’t,” Bill starts but Alex cuts him off.

“That’s enough,” she says shortly, “The BAU is here to help us find the person that’s doing this. Plain and simple, and every one here is going to work together to solve this. No arguments.”

Silence falls over the room and Alex meets the eyes of every one of her Deputies, when no one else speaks up Alex nods once and turns her attention back to the agent beside her.

“Agent Henshaw,” Alex says with a small gesture to the older man, “room’s yours.”

Sam watches as Alex takes a few steps back, leaning against a desk and allowing the attention of the room to fall on Agent Henshaw. While all the other eyes in the rooms turn to Agent Henshaw, Sam continues to watch the Sheriff.

Outwardly she showed nothing but calm, her posture relaxed but with the authority that was needed to keep order in the chaos around them. There was something about the other woman that Sam had noticed the previous night, when they had been talking in Alex’s office. 

The Sheriff carried everything and everyone in this town on her shoulders, she bore the weight of them at all times and Sam couldn’t help but wonder how long she’d done it. Moments like now, when her father was mentioned or when she knew she would have to make a decision that would affect everyone, her shoulders were set and tight. 

Sam doubted that most people would notice but during their talk the night before, there had been a brief moment when that weight had seemed to lift. It didn’t last long but for the briefest of moments Sam felt she had gotten a glimpse at the woman Alex could be if she freed herself from some of the pressure and guilt she felt. 

“Thank you Sheriff,” Agent Henshaw says as he looks around the room. “Like I said, we aren’t here to take anything over, but to offer assistance. We’ve out together a profile that we’ll go over now. My agents will give you all handouts with the same information on it.

“The person we’re looking for is a white male, between the ages of 24-50, in good physical shape. It takes a lot of effort to subdue and carry a full grown woman and do so nearly undetected,” at that Agent Henshaw nods to Sam who stands up so she can address the room.

“This man is going to be someone local,” she starts and there is a mumble through the small crowd. She knew this was not going to be something that went over well but she presses on, “he’ll be someone that, for the most part, goes unnoticed in town. At first its going to a surprise to everyone, but after some thought, it’ll make sense.”

That was the part she’d already put together, now for the extra help Lena had provided, “He’s going to be an outlier, someone that doesn’t fit in well. He’ll have a clean house despite being a mess himself. He’s going to have a designated work area,” Sam adds as she gestures to the boards behind her, “There’s a lot of prep work to do something like this and there’s likely to be a rather large work area. He’s going to own a house or other property where he can be alone with these girls.,” Sam pauses, letting everything sink in. “Most unsubs tend to stay away from owning animals, this one will not. He likely has a large breed dog, something he uses as protection. It’ll be a guard dog, he’ll need it to help with security.”

Sam looks at Kara who nods and continues, “We’ve identified both of the bodies found. Jane Doe number one is twenty-one year old Allison Weber, from Bridgeport Connecticut and Jane Doe number two is twenty year old Elizabeth Walters from Portland Oregon. Both were reported as missing eight months ago by their families. Allison had just been hired at a law firm in Seattle and Elizabeth was on her way to visit family in North Dakota.” Kara sighs and continues, “We made notification to their families this morning. They went missing within two weeks of each other, but the Coroner puts their time of death at no more than twenty-four hours before they were found.”

Kara pauses a moment as a round of surprised mumbles goes around the room. 

“He has them somewhere that they can’t escape from and can’t be heard,” Kara continues, “for months on end. Wally said there’s evidence of old scaring and that its likely they were tortured in the time he had them.”

“And you think someone from here could do this?” Steve asks a bit of surprise in his voice.

“As hard as it may be to believe, and as much as we might not want it to be true, yes I do think this is someone from here,” Kara says with a nod. “We’re going to make sure that everyone has a copy of the profile so you know what to be looking for.”

“And with those profiles we’re going to start doubling up on patrols,” Alex says when Kara finishes. “It’s going to mean longer hours for everyone and no days off until we find something. I know it’s not ideal but

I won’t be going home until we figure this out either.”

Sam, who had resumed her position sitting beside a desk in the back if the room, watches as a quick shadow passes quickly over Kara’s face before she takes the seat beside Sam again.

“Everything alright?” Sam asks as Alex goes about handing out assignments to her Deputies.

“She’s going to be taking naps on that damn couch until we solve this,” Kara answers with a sigh. “Just like our father.”

“Kara,” Sam says in a warning tone. “I suggest you not make that comparison to her.”

Kara gives her a confused look but before she has the chance to say anything Alex is dismissing the room, sending some of her Deputies home to sleep so they can work overnight tonight, and the rest out to start searching the area. 

Once the room clears of everyone but the three of them, Olsen and Henshaw heading out to assist some of the Deputies and Brainy back behind his computer in the conference room, Alex sighs heavily and leans against the desk next to Sam and Kara. 

“Please tell me that I didn’t just send them out on a wild goose chase,” Alex asks, looking down at the two agents. 

“Profiles aren’t perfect,” Sam offers with a sigh, “but I don’t think we’ve sent anyone on a wild goose chase.”

“No offense to the profile,” Alex says with a shake of her head, “but that could easily be a dozen people in this town.”

“True,” Kara agrees as she stands, “that’s why we have to keep digging through whatever evidence we have here to find whatever outlier we can to help narrow the profile even more.”

“How exactly do we narrow down the profile?” Alex asks with a somewhat skeptical look to her sister.

“For starters we can look at Wally’s report on Marcus Smith’s body,” Sam answers as she comes back to her feet in front of Alex. She hadn’t realized just how close she was to the Sheriff until she came to her feet and found herself just a few inches away. 

“Right,” Alex stammers, taking an unconscious step back, “that’s on my desk. I’ll just go grab it.”

“I’ll get it,” Sam offers and quickly heads towards Alex’s office. 

Alex watches her go a bit confused and when she looks back at her sister, Kara is grinning at her.

“What?” Alex asks with a short chuckle.

“Nothing,” is Kara’s answers as she looks away, still grinning.

“You’re an ass,” Alex chuckles at her, then with a sigh adds, “What happens if we don’t find anything today?”

“We keep looking,” Kara answers honestly. “If I had to bet, I’d say this guy isn’t done yet.”

“Great”, Alex mumbles as she lets herself flop down in the chair beside her sister. After a moment she adds, “For whatever its worth, I’m glad you’re here, that you’re helping with this.”

“So am I,” Kara says with a nod.

**

_ “Come on Lucy,” Darrell says again as he leans against the side of the bar, he’d walked in about an our ago and had been trying since then to convince her to go out with him, “You’ve been shooting me down since high school.”_

_ “And yet we keep having this conversation,” Lucy says to him with a short smile. She’d been trying to restock but Darrell had positioned himself in the small area of the bar that was open, so that she could walk back and forth from the bar area to the back _

_ “Go out with me,” Darrell tries again, “You have no idea what you’ve missing out on.”_

_ “I can take a guess,” Lucy mumbles under her breath so that he can’t hear her. He wasn’t lying when he said that he’d been asking her out since high school. He’d been trying since she had turned him down for their sixth grade formal dance in middle school._

_ She went to walk away, to go to the back to get another bottle of whiskey, she knew Maggie would be in soon and wanted to make sure that she had enough of her favorite readily available, but she found her way completely blocked now by Darrell. He’d put his entire mass in from her way, leaving her no where she could go._

_ “Darrell,” she sighs heavily, “I really don’t have time for this.”_

_ “The hell you don’t,” he says in almost a snarl, “this place is dead tonight.”_

_ “I still need to get restocked,” Lucy argues, “I’d prefer not to be stuck here super late on my birthday.”_

_ “Fine,” Darrell says with a shrug but he makes no move to clear her path, “agree to go out with me tonight and I’ll take you someplace special for your birthday tonight.”_

_ “No thanks,” Lucy says again, standing her ground in front of the tall man. _

_ “I’m not leaving until you change your mind,” is Darrell’s response._

_ “Pretty sure she said no,” Lucy hears Maggie’s voice and, looking behind Darrell, sees the other woman standing there, arms crossed. _

_ Darrell turns enough to throw a snear at Maggie, “This is none of your business.”_

_ “Well, I’m afraid that it is,” Maggie disagrees. “Now you need to move out of her way.”_

_ Darrell turns so that he’s now facing Maggie, his back to Lucy, “You planning on making me?”_

_ “If I need to,” Maggie answers instantly, not budging an inch._

_ “There a problem?” Alex’s voice comes from the doorway of the bar. There’s a moment when it feels like the bar itself is holding its breath as Darrell slowly tears his eyes from Maggie to look over her shoulder to where the Sheriff stands._

_ Darrell locks eyes with Alex for a heartbeat and Lucy can’t help but wonder if things will finally come to a head between the two. The whole town has been waiting for the day those two finally tore each other apart over their shared history. _

_ “Not at all Sheriff,” Darrell says after what felt like a small eternity. “I was just leaving.”_

_ Darrell throws another glare at Maggie before pushing past her and heading towards the door. He pauses when he reaches Alex and mumbles, “Might want to talk to your medic friend about sticking her nose in other people’s business.”_

_ Alex stands her ground and doesn’t bother to give him a response as he heads past her and out of the bar._

_ “Fun night I see,” Maggie says as she takes the few steps between her and the bar. _

_ “Darrell, he’s been at it for years,” Lucy sighs with a small smile to Maggie, “but thank you.”_

_ “I’ll have a talk with him tomorrow,” Alex offers as she too steps up to the bar._

_ “Thanks, though I doubt it’ll do much good,” Lucy sighs. “He hasn’t stopped since sixth grade. I do, however, owe you both a drink,” Lucy says with a smile as she pulls two glasses out from beneath the bar._

_ “Is today really your birthday?” Maggie asks as she slides onto the bar stool. _

_ “What? Lucy asks a little confused as she pulls the whiskey out, frowning when she sees how little there is in the bottle._

_ “I heard you say that today is your birthday,” Maggie answers. _

_ “Um, yea, it is,” Lucy nods as she sits the bottle on the bar, “I’m running a little low. I need to run to the back quick.”_

_ Maggie nods as Lucy heads into the back room and Alex slides onto the stool next to Maggie. _

_ “Still going to talk to him tomorrow?” Maggie asks without looking over at Alex._

_ “Oh yea,” Alex said automatically with a single nod._

_ “Here we go,” Lucy says, returning with a full whiskey bottle in hand. She makes quick work of cracking the bottle open and pouring two glasses._

_ A moment passes and Maggie slowly pushes her whiskey glass around on the bar._

_ “Everything ok? Lucy asks as she watches Maggie._

_ “Just thinking,” Maggie answers then she looks up and asks, “Do you want to dance?”_

_ “What?” Lucy asks with a laugh._

_ “Do you want to dance?” Maggie repeats with a smile. “It is your birthday after all.”_

_ “Is she joking?” Lucy asks looking at Alex with a chuckle._

_ “Doubtful,” Alex answers with a grin, “she’s not funny.”_

_ “Nice,” Maggie says with a playful shove to Alex’s shoulder. “You can watch the bar for a few minutes?”_

_ “Sure,” Alex nods as Maggie slides off the bar stool and to her feet again. _

_ “You two are unbelievable,” Lucy laughs but walks around the bar to where Maggie is now standing. _

_ “This isn’t so bad is it?” Maggie asks a moment later as they make their way onto the tiny dance floor in the bar. She carefully wraps an arm around Lucy’s waist, Lucy’s arms wrapping around Maggie’s neck. _

_ It’s not the first time the two of them had danced together. In a town as small as Bella Rosa every event is causes for the entire town to party and there had been a few weddings that had ended at Red’s._

_ “It never is,” Lucy smiles as they sway together to the music. “I’m sorry you had to be here for Darrell’s attitude.”_

_ “I’ve seen much worse,” Maggie shrugs. “Besides, no one should act like that.”_

_ “One of the cons of the bar owning business,” Lucy says, trying to shrug off the incident._

_ Maggie levels her with a look but stays quiet and Lucy moves so that her head is resting against Maggie’s, Maggie’s arms wrapped around her as they continue to move with the music._

_ “I’m glad you’re here,” Lucy says in a low voice._

Lucy’s eyes come open slowly, the dream slipping away as she takes in the room. This isn’t her bedroom above the bar, or the guest room Maggie has shown her to before bed the previous night. 

Looking around the room Lucy remembers the event of the previous night, well a few hours ago, and she smiles to herself. Stretching her arms out the smile disappears as she realizes she’s the only one still in the bed. 

Lucy sits up and realizes that Maggie is no in the room at all. Grabbing a shirt from the floor Lucy slips it on and heads out into the small hallway leading to the living room and kitchen. 

She stops when she hears a noise coming from the kitchen and for the first time since her eyes opened, she worries that Maggie could be upset about last night and she hesitates.

Taking a deep breath she takes the last few steps and walks into the kitchen. Maggie was standing with her back against the sink, coffee mug in her hand. She was wearing the same plaid patterned sleep pants as the night before along with the tank top, though she’d added a warm looking robe over it all. Her hair was still a mess and she smiled when she saw Lucy.

“Hi,” Lucy says in a soft voice, still feeling a bit unsure. 

“Morning,” Maggie says over the top of her coffee mug. 

Lucy hesitates before saying, “I wasn’t sure where you had gone.”

“Ah, I just thought,” Maggie starts to say but then stops and tries again, “I wanted to give you some space this morning, in case you were having any regrets about last night.”

Lucy lets the words sink in, Maggie was afraid that she’d regret spending the night with her, expected it even. 

“I know that sometimes, when something like last night happens, you need something to distract yourself from it,” Maggie goes on when Lucy doesn’t say anything. Setting her cup down on the counter she continues, “So, if that’s what you needed, I understand.” 

Lucy takes a few steps forward without thinking and before she realizes it she’s standing in front of Maggie. She hesitates but reaches out and lays a hand on either of Maggie’s shoulders.

“Last night was not a distraction,” Lucy starts slowly. “What happened at the bar was terrible,” Lucy shutters at the thought of Mark’s body, “and I know that it’ll be something that I’ll never forget. I don’t know how I’m going to sleep the next few nights.”

Maggie nods and looks down at the floor. Lucy reaches over and lifts her chin gently until she’s once again looking at Lucy.

“You were not a distraction,” Lucy says more firmly. Her lips twitch up in a smile, “I’ve been waiting for a night like last night for a while now.”

“Yea?” Maggie asks but the corner of her mouth has already turned up into a lopsided grin.

“Yea,” Lucy answers, smile spreading across her face. Her hand that was on Maggie’s chin moves to cup Maggie’s cheek. She leans forward and places a soft kiss on Maggie’s lips. 

**

“You do tend to skip a lot of meals, don’t you?” Sam asks with a smile, standing in the doorway of Alex’s office for the second time that day. 

Alex looks up from the paper in her hand, she’d been rereading the report that Wally had sent over that morning. _Blue chalk_, Alex had thought to herself, _Three bodies and all the evidence we have is blue chalk found on Mark. _

“I guess I tend to lose track of time,” Alex answers with a weak grin. 

“I know the feeling,” Sam responds with a grin, holding up a brown paper bag. “Lena must have known none of us were checking the time. She dropped off lunch for everyone.”

“That woman is a saint,” Alex groans as she sits back in her chair as Sam walks into the office and sets one of the paper bags in the center of her desk. “I keep telling Kara she must have done something right in a past life to deserve someone like Lena.”

Sam laughs as she takes the seat across from Alex, “You shouldn’t give them too much of a hard time. They’ve got the kind of thing people spend their entire lives looking for.”

Alex sighs but nods her head, “I guess you’re right.”

“I take it you’re not looking?” Sam asks, pulling her sandwich out of her bag.

Alex chuckles, “Not really.” Alex pulls her own sandwich out and unwraps it, “I haven’t seriously dated anyone since high school.”

“And not seriously?” Sam asks with a grin.

Alex shakes her head but smiles, “I left for the Army right after high school. Did that until I got hurt then came home and started working here. I didn’t really give myself time to think about it.”

“Fair enough,” Sam says as she bites into her lunch, “Not everyone gets as lucky as your sister.”

“Sounds like you’re speaking from personal experience,” Alex says, lifting her eyebrow in question.

Sam nods, “Unfortunately so.” Sam hesitates but then goes on, “I was married, once, fairly recently actually.”

“I wasn’t going to asks,” Alex says, she watches the other woman for a moment as Sam struggles with whither to continue or not.

“I know,” she finally says at last. “I thought we had the perfect relationship, we both worked a lot and traveled. It was convenient,” Sam shrugs. “Not the makings of a good marriage but then I found out I was pregnant with Ruby. We decided we should get married and try to do the family thing together.”

Alex stats quiet, listening, her lunch sitting forgotten on her desk for the moment.

“We both still worked all the time,” Sam continues, “Thankfully my mother was there to help out.” Sam sighs, “We really weren’t much of a couple, then I found out I pregnant again. I was six months pregnant when he decided he didn’t want to do the married and family thing, so he left.”

“Just like that?” Alex asks, a bit of disbelief in her voice. 

Sam offers a tight smile and says, “Said he wasn’t ready for that kind of life. I thought maybe he’d change his mind but a few weeks later I got a notice that he was terminating his rights to the kids.”

Alex just shakes her head in disbelief. 

“It was alright though,” Sam says with a shrug. “I wasn’t nearly as upset about it as I think I should have been but I just wasn’t. By the time he left we spent all our time arguing and it was honestly more of a relief than anything else.”

“I’m still sorry that happened,” Alex says after a moment. 

“I got two amazing kids out of it,” Sam says with a smile, “so it wasn’t all bad. Things tend to work out as they’re meant to.”

“I hope you’re right,” Alex says quietly, “because so far none of this makes sense to me. I thought I knew the people here, thought I would know before something like this happens here. I thought I….”

“You don’t have to have all the answers Alex,” Sam offers in a understanding voice. 

“It’s not even needing the answers,” Alex sighs. “I thought I knew what my life was supposed to be, who I was supposed to be but now, I just don’t know,” Alex says, leaning forward and resting her elbows on her desk. 

“Don’t let this case make you start doubting yourself now,” Sam encourages. “You have the mind for this. Sometimes it’s just hard to see it when you’ve been looking at it too long.”

Alex sighs heavily then asks with a small smile, “What ever happened to just being dumb kids in high school where we didn’t have responsibilities?”

Sam laughs at that, “I wish I knew, but I can’t say I’d go back. Fashion choices in high school left a bit to be desired.”

“So the power suit has not always been your style huh?” Alex teases as her smile grows. 

Sam laughs again, “Not even. I was the jeans and hoodie type most of the year. My mother used to tell me I looked like a bum.”

“Here,” Alex says as she stands up and grabs a picture frame that sat on the top of the one file cabinet. “This was Kara and I on the first day of school my senior year,” Alex says as she hands the picture to Sam. 

“I did not have you pegged as the black leather jacket type,” Sam smiles as she looks at the picture. Alex at age seventeen looked much the same as she did now, though her eyes carried a bit more pain since then, and Kara, who would have been eleven in the picture looked much smaller than she did now. Both girls wore big smiles.

“Oh yea,” Alex chuckles as she perches herself on the edge of her desk. “Leather jacket and blue jeans, I thought I was cool back then.”

“Didn’t we all,” Sam laughs as she hands the picture back to Alex, who takes it and looks at it, shaking her head slightly. 

“I spent half the money I made working down at the mill the summer between my junior and senior year to buy that jacket,” Alex laughs as she sits the picture back down. “And the other half on the old blue truck that’s still sitting in the driveway at home,” she adds as she takes her seat behind her desk again.

“My first car was a white Pontiac Grandam,” Sam says with a smile. “It was a hand me down, of a hand me down car. Six weeks after I bought it the driver’s side door stopped working,” she laughs as she remembers. 

“Stopped working?” Alex chuckles, watching as Sam’s eyes light up with the laughter. 

“Yep, couldn’t get the hell out of it all of a sudden,” Sam continues, “but the window still worked, old crank style windows, so I just crawled out the window.”

“You Dukes of Hazards it,” Alex’s smile grows as she tries to picture a seventeen year old Sam sliding out a car window.

“I did,” Sam answers with a nod, “I’m sure my mother still has the picture somewhere of it. That was the best, worse car I think I’ve ever owned.”

“I don’t have any cool stories like that with my truck,” Alex shakes her head with a smile, “Best I have is the time we thought we could pull this old stump out of the ground. We wanted to build a dock out over the old creek and the stump was in the way. Long story short, I needed a new bumper.”

“I would have loved to see that,” Sam laughs. “That poor truck.”

“Hey, that truck had a good life. The thing’s older than my parents,” Alex defense with a chuckle. “Now it’s retired in the driveway. I even bought it a nice new cover.”

“I’m not sure when the last time was I laughed at old stories like that,” Sam says after a moment passes. “It was nice.”

“It was,” Alex agrees with a nod as she smiles at the woman across the desk from her. “Too bad you have to go back to DC when this is all over,” Alex adds without thinking.

“Your little town is charming,” Sam offers with a nod, “but I would miss the kids.”

Alex chuckles at that, “Fair enough. You should them out here sometime, show them what a real winter looks like.”

“I should probably wait until they’re both walking on their own better,” Sam chuckles, “but it’s not a terrible idea. Ruby loves the snow”

“She should spend some time with Emma,” Alex smiles, “That child is part eskimo or something. The cold never bothers her.”

“Here,” Sam says as she opens her phone and pulls up pictures from last winter. She stands up and walks around Alex’s desk so that she’s standing next to the seated Sheriff. “This was Ruby’s first time in the snow.”

“Look at that smile,” Alex says, smiling herself. 

“She would have stayed out there all day if we’d let her,” Sam laughs as she leans down, resting her hand on the desk, using her other hand to hold up the phone and scroll through pictures. 

“These were last winter?” Alex asks, still smiling.

“Yea,” Sam nods and looks from her phone to the Sheriff, only then realizing how close she was to Alex now. “Beginning of December.”

“She’d love it here,” Alex says, still looking at the pictures, “Snows here more months out of the year than it doesn’t.”

Sam was surprised at the lightheaded feeling she had in that moment and realized that she had been watching Alex more so than paying attention to the pictures or conversations.

“I’m sure she would,” she manages to answers, her voice betraying her ever so slightly, causing Alex to look over at her.

Their eyes meet and for a moment Sam forgets what they had been talking about. 

Before either of them has the chance to say or do anything there is a knock from the doorway of Alex’s office. They both jump slightly and look at the door, where Brainy is standing looking a bit surprised himself. 

“Sorry, I don’t mean to interrupt,” Brainy says sounding a bit shy, even for him.

“You’re not,” Sam says standing up and shoving her phone back into her pocket. 

“I know we were supposed to be doing lunch right now,” Brainy says. When Lena had brought lunch in for everyone Sam had been sure to make sure that Brainy was eating as well. The tech wiz had the tendency to get lost in his work and go the entire day without eating. “I think I may have found something,” he adds.

“What’d you find?” Alex asks, sounding a bit hopeful.

“Well,” Brainy hesitates for a moment then says, “I think I found his other victims.”

Both Sam and Alex are stunned silent for a heartbeat.

“You what?” Sam asks finally.

“I think I found his other victims,” Brainy repeats, “I have the files in the conference room.”


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More victims are discovered and the killer is revealed.

“What do you mean you found the other victims?” Alex ask, coming to her feet in disbelief.  


“Well, you found victims eight and nine,” Brainy says in a bit of a rush, “I figured it would make sense for me to start looking into all the unsolved, strange cases a hundred mile radius from here. Turns out there’s way more than you want to think about,” Brainy stops, shakes his head slightly and continues, “Anyway, I was able to trace a handful of cases that were similar to this one.”

“How many is a handful?” Sam asks as she and Alex step around the Sheriff’s desk and move towards him. 

“Um, ten that match the markings on the first two victims,” Brainy answers a bit shyly. “Going back to the victim marked as number one.”

“You found the first victim?” Alex asks stunned. 

“I found two of them,” Brainy says in a low voice.

“Two number ones?” Alex asks, looking from Brainy to Sam and back again.

“It might be easier to just show you,” Brainy answers with a sigh and he turns and leaves the office, Alex and Sam close behind him.

“Show us what?” Alex asks. 

“I had the case files sent over,” Brainy answers, “They got here right before lunch. I’ve been sorting through them since then. All eighteen of them.”

“How many?” Sam asks as they reach the door to the conference room. Brainy continues into the room while both Sam and Alex stop in the doorway, surprised by what meets them there. 

Laid out on the long table in the center of the room were folders and case files, laid out so that each one was visible. Alex couldn’t believe how much the table was able to hold as her eyes scanned it, looking from one file to the next, each one with handwritten dates and locations on them.

“While I was looking for the cases that match the first two I also found ones that match the most recent one as well,” Brainy says a bit shyly. “There were eight, not counting Mr. Smith.”

“Eight,” Alex says stunned as she picks up a report off the top of one of the files that matches Mark’s death. She scans over it until she sees two words, “Blue chalk,” she mutters under her breath.

“How far back do these go?” Sam asks walking around the table.

“There are two different sets of murders,” Brainy stars to explain. “The first set, the ones with the markings and that are numbered, they go back twelve years,” Brainy says gesturing to the files that have pictures of brunette women on the front of them. “The other set, the ones that were beaten to death, they were all males and started about six years ago.”

Alex looks up at the young agent, “You mean this psycho has been doing this for more than a decade and we had no idea?”

“It’s not as simple as that Sheriff,” Sam says from across the table. 

“Right,” Brainy nods, “I had to go looking for these. Most of them weren’t even here, they were found over the border.”

“Over the border?” Alex asks, raising an eyebrow at the young agent, “In Canada?”

“Yea,” Brainy nods again, “The first set, the women, were all found in different areas of British Columbia. All of which are a three to four hour drive from here.”

“And the other sets of murders?” Alex asks, looking down at the report in her hand from one of the murders that had been committed through a savage beating.

“Um, the first two were in small towns in Idaho,” Brainy provides, “The rest were in other parts of Montana and Alberta.”

“How did they not realize something was going on?” Alex asks surprised. In her lifetime of living this close to the border between the two countries she’d known a few Mounties over the years. 

“Same way we tend to miss these kinds of things,” Sam answers. “They happened or are found in different regions, or counties. Not all departments communicate when they have something like this.”

“Right,” Alex mumbles as she sets the report back on its proper file, “So whoever did this had to be smart enough to know not to drop the bodies in the same area every time.”

“And one with a passport,” Sam nods. “That’s all you need to get back and forth out here.”

“Right,” Alex mumbles as she looks at the files scattered around the table. “I’m going to see if I can find another board. We need to get this up and in order so we know what our timeline looks like.”

She doesn’t say anything else before she turns on her heel and heads back out of the conference room. She stops at a desk half way between the conference room and the front of the station, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath.

While it had been obvious from the beginning that this killer had been at this a long time she would never have imagined a body count this high, easily doubled what Alex had already feared. 

_Whoever this is_, Alex thinks to herself, _has been at this for even longer than I thought. How the hell are we going to find this guy?_

“Alex,” she hears her name spoken and opens her eyes to find Maggie and Lucy standing just on the other side of the waist high railing, both with concerned looks on their faces. 

“Everything ok?” Maggie asks after a moment passes with nothing said. 

“Yea,” Alex answers with a quick nod, “I just need to find another board, we found a few more cases that might be linked to ours.”

“I’ll give you a hand,” Maggie offers and Alex accepts with a nod as she walks through the gate.

Alex stops in front of Lucy and places a reassuring hand on her shoulder, “How are you doing today?”

“Better,” Lucy nods with a quick glance to Maggie and a small smile appears on her face. 

Alex looks from Lucy to Maggie and back again and manages to suppress the smile she feels before saying, “Come on Maggie, I think we might still have another board in the back room.”

Maggie follows Alex as she heads across the short hallway to the storage room, opening the door she flips on the light. 

“You alright?” Maggie asks as she steps into the room beside Alex.

“I think we found the other victims,” Alex answers in a tight voice, “Plus some.”

“What do you mean plus some?” Maggie asks, her voice confused as she follows Alex towards the back of the room, where they manage to find another bulletin board and begin to wrestle it out from behind an old file cabinet. 

“I mean there are more bodies with this case than we thought,” Alex says with a shake of her head. 

“This isn’t counting the ones we found in Afghanistan, is it?” Maggie asks, though she’s already pretty sure she knows the answer. 

“No,” Alex sighs as they manage to get the bulletin board out of storage. “What are you two doing here anyway?”

“Agent Arias asked that Lucy stop back in this morning so she could talk to her again,” Maggie answers, “and I wasn’t going to let her come alone in case Agent Jackass was here.”

Alex chuckles, “I don’t think that’s actually his name, but yea, I get it. How’s Lucy actually doing?” Alex asks, looking back across the hall, where Lucy stands talking with Sam.

Maggie follows Alex’s gaze until her eyes land on Lucy and she smiles slightly, “I think she’s going to be alright. It’ll take some time, something like that leaves an impression on you, but she’s tough.”

As though Lucy had heard Maggie she looks over at the pair and a small smiles appears on her face for the second time in a short time.

Alex looks at Maggie and says, “Did something happen?”

“What do you mean?” Maggie asks, looking from Lucy to Alex, who is giving her a knowing smile. “Yea ok,” Maggie says with a chuckle, “Yes, something happened.”

“About damn time,” Alex chuckles as she slaps Maggie on the shoulder, “now help me get this thing to the conference room so we can get to work.”

“Still bossing me around,” Maggie sighs but Alex can hear the smile in her voice.

“Thought by now you’d be used to it,” Alex smiles.

A few minutes later Alex stands in the conference room, taking down the pictures they had already put up the day before. 

“I can’t believe you were able to find all this so quickly,” Alex says as she looks at the files spread out on the table. 

“One of my many skills is that I can run victim profiles through a software I help write that matches their physical description, wounds and dump sites and searches for cases that are similar,” Brainy says in a rush of words.

“You wrote the software?” Alex ask, turning to look at the young man.

“Helped,” Brainy corrects sounding just a bit shy, “a buddy of mine, that also works for the BAU, was designing it and needed some insight. So I helped.”

“Don’t listen to him,” Sam says as she walks back into the conference room with a smile, “He saved his ass. His program was so far off the mark that it was hitting cases that were nothing alike. He never takes credit.”

“Well, you are very talented,” Alex says with a nod and smile at Brainy, “and you should take some credit for yourself.”

“Thanks,” Brainy says in a low, embarrassed voice and Alex notices his face is a little red.

“How’s it looking?” Sam asks as she walks around the table to where Alex was standing looking at the photos.

“Like a mess,” Alex admits with a sigh, “Some of this just doesn’t make sense. Like here,” Alex says picking up a picture of a brunette young woman, “This is the victim marked number three, but she was found a day before this victim,” Alex picks up a picture from the next file, “who was marked with a one.”

“Are there more like this?” Sam asks looking over the table.

“I don’t know yet,” Alex admits, “I haven’t gotten that far yet.”

“Well,” Sam says as she slips out of her suit jacket, “let’s get into it then.”

**

Kara walks into the station and drops her bag on the first chair that she walks past. Pulling her coat off, she drops it on top of her bag with a heavy sigh. Henshaw had told her to go home during lunch because he was still insisting that she take some of her vacation while here. It hadn’t been going so well.

“Everything ok?” Alex’s voice startles her and she turns around to see her sister standing in the doorway of her office, leaning against the doorjamb, looking oh so much like their father had when they were children.

“Yea, just ah,” Kara says, bringing a hand up to rub her temple, “lunch didn’t go so well.”

“I was worried it would get to be too much,” Alex sighs as she pushes off the doorjamb and takes the few steps to her sister. “This has been a lot to ask of Lena. None of this can be easy.”

“It’s not,” Kara sighs, “but I think it’s more than that. I haven’t taken much time off work since Emma was born. This was the first real vacation we’ve had since our honeymoon. I’m worried that I’m asking too much of her.”

“Hey,” Alex says, laying a supportive hand on her sister’s shoulder, “Lena loves you and you two have already been through hell together. You guys can get through this too.”

“I know,” Kara nods. “I just hope something breaks soon or else I might have to tell Henshaw I need to come off this case.”

“Not a horrible idea,” Alex nods, “Come see what we’ve managed to do while you were out.”

Alex leads Kara through the station and into the conference room. Three bulletin boards now covered with pictures and dates line the far wall.

“What the hell is all this?” Kara asks as she gapes at the dozens of pictures.

“Brainy was able to finding the other victims,” Alex answers, “We’re still trying to figure out some of it, not all the numbers add up, but we’re getting there.”

“How far back do these go?” Kara asks, stepping up to the first board.

“Twelve years,” Sam answers handing Kara a paper with all the dates and locations written down on it.

“These dates are accurate?” Kara asks as her eyes scroll down the list and the look in her eyes intensifies as she reads. 

“Yea,” Sam answers sounding slightly confused, “Dates found and when the time of death was decided by the coroners.”

“This can’t be right,” Kara says and her voice has taken on a bit of surreal sound to it.

“Why?” Alex asks, stepping up beside her sister and looking down at the paper in her hands.

“These dates don’t look familiar to you?” Kara asks, looking from the paper in her hands to her sister. “Not from the first set of murders, the second. The murders where the victim was beaten to death.”

Alex looks down over the list and her eyes grow wide as the dates sink in and she looks at Kara stunned. A look passes between the two and Sam can sense the air in the room change as both sisters grow serious, anger seeming to cloud both their features more with each passing second. 

“Someone deal me in here,” Sam says as she watches the sister in their wordless exchange.

“Not looking at the first set of murders,” Kara says as she steps up to the board that has the pictures from the other murders on it. “These dates are pretty significant dates for Lena and I, big moments in our lives together.”

Sam takes a moment then nods and says, “Ok, lets walk through it.”

Kara nods and points to the first picture, “The first one was two weeks after Lena and I graduated from college and two days after she broke up with Nate. We got engaged that December,” Kara says pointing to the next picture, “Three days before this one.

“We got married in June of 2015, there were no bodies with this one,” Kara admits but there’s a hesitation in her tone. 

“But you and Lena were attacked when you stopped here on your way back from your honeymoon,” Alex provides to which Kara nods but doesn’t continue, her face darkens slightly as realization dawns on her.

“What about the next one?” Sam asks, indicating the next victim, “What happened in September 2015?”

“Nate was sentenced to his prison term,” Alex says followed by an angry whispered, “Shit. How did I not see this?”

“All the beatings after that were on the anniversary of Nate being sentenced?” Sam asks looking back to Kara.

“All but one,” Kara answers, “There was one the day after Emma was born, in January.”

“Son of a bitch,” Alex fumes as she heads out the door of the conference room.

“Sheriff,” Sam says as she follows her from the room but Alex doesn’t stop. “Alex,” Sam says firmly, and the Sheriff stops but doesn’t turn to face her. “You can’t storm out of here and go after him alone.”

“Darrell has been under my nose for years,” Alex says in a low voice, “He’s been doing this, and I had no idea, for years.”

“I know,” Sam says as she walks around the Sheriff to face her, “and we’ll find him, but you can’t go alone, and you can’t go while you’re this upset.”

Alex doesn’t answer but gives a simple nod.

“Good,” Sam sighs, not realizing she had been holding her breath, “Then I need you back in the conference room.” When Alex looks like she’s about to argue with her she adds, “Right now all we have in a theory and some dates. We don’t have anything that ties Darrell to these murders yet. I want you to work with Brainy. Go over the cases, dates, locations and trace Darrell’s movements, Brainy knows how. Get us proof so that when we find him, we can hold him.”

“Where are you going to be?” Alex asks and Sam watches her face change just slightly as she slowly gets her temper back under control. 

“I’m taking Kara and heading over to your house,” Sam answers. “If this is Darrell and he’s killing more often now then we need to make sure that Lena and Emma are safe.”

Sam watches as that realization hits Alex and her faces changes again, this time to one of fear.

“I should go,” Alex says but Sam shakes her head immediately.

“Stay here, work with Brainy,” Sam says, holding her hands up to stop the argument that she knows is coming, “You know Darrell probably the best of any of us, help Brainy and I’ll take care of your family. I promise.”

“Kara,” Alex says in a low, pained voice, “she can’t lose either of them.”

“She won’t,” Sam says, laying a comforting hand on Alex’s forearm. “I’m not going to let anything happen to your family.”

As though she knew what they were talking about Kara emerges from the conference room, snatching her coat off the chair she’d dropped in on upon arriving back at the station.

“I have to get back to the house,” she explains as she slips it on, “If this is Darrell he might.”

“I know,” Alex cuts her off with the wave of the hand, “Agent Arias is going with you. Get Lena and Emma then get back here. Don’t freak them out though, tell Emma that you guys are coming here to visit me at work.” Alex lays a hand on Kara’s shoulder, “It’s going to be alright. I’ll call mom and have her meet us here too. That way everyone is here.”

“Ok,” is all Kara manages then her and Sam turn and head out of the station. Before leaving Sam glances back at Alex, who hasn’t moved, and gives her one last, hopefully reassuring nod, then follows Kara out the front door.

“I know you can’t possible think I’m letting you drive,” Sam says when she sees car keys in Kara’s hand.

“No offense,” Kara says and Sam notices the small tremor in her voice, “but I’m not an FBI agent right now. I’m a wife and a mother.”

“Exactly,” Sam says as they stop next to Kara’s rental, “and you’re scared. Which means that you aren’t thinking straight. We want to get there fast but without crashing. So, I’m driving.” At that Sam pulls the keys from Kara’s hand and is surprised to find that the younger woman allows her to. 

By the time Sam has the car started Kara has already slid into the passenger seat. 

“I can’t believe I had that psycho in my hands yesterday and I let him go,” Kara fumes as Sam pulls away from the curb and heads down the street.

“You didn’t know,” Sam says in a calm, level voice. 

“Doesn’t matter,” Kara shakes her head. “I should have known. After what his brother did, I should have seen something.”

“There was no way you could have known what he was doing,” Sam says with a small shake of her head. “This isn’t something that you could have known was going to happen.”

A few moments later they pull up to the curb in front of Alex’s house. Kara reaches for her seatbelt, but Sam stops her, covering Kara’s hand with her own.

“We don’t want to startle either of them,” Sam says in a clam voice. “so I need you to take a breath before we go in there.”

“We don’t have time for this,” Kara starts to say but is stopped by the look Sam gives her. “Ok,” she sighs and closes her eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath.

“Good?” Sam says as Kara opens her eyes and nods once.

“Yea,” Kara nods, “let’s go.”

They climb out of the car and make their way to the front door, Sam looking around the front yard looking for any sign of something out of place. Not exactly easy considering that the only time Sam had been here was in the early hours of that morning, when everything was dark.

“Everything look good?” Sam ask as they reach the front door. 

“Yea,” Kara nods, opening the front door. The quiet that meets them is unsettling at first and Sam’s hand instantly lands on the butt of her service pistol as does Kara’s.

“Honey,” Kara calls into the house and a moment later Scout comes barreling down the stairs, barely managing to slow down before he runs into Kara. 

“Hey boy,” Kara says reaching down and patting the top of the dog’s head. “Where’s everybody at?” 

“Kara?” Lena’s voice comes from upstairs, sounding confused. “Is everything alright?” she asks as she appears at the top of the stairs.

“Everything’s fine love,” Kara says, taking her hand off her weapon. She nods once to Sam then heads up the stairs, Sam staying downstairs to make sure they’re the only ones in the house.

“I didn’t expect you back so soon,” Lena says with a smile as Kara reaches the top of the stairs. 

“Where’s Emma?” Kara says, looking down the hallway.

“I just laid her down for a nap,” Lena says now more confused. “What’s going on?”

“We need to go to the station,” Kara says trying not to sound worried. When Lena doesn’t say anything or move Kara sighs and touches her elbow, directing her into the room they’re sharing. “Alright, we think Darrell is the unsub behind all this.”

“Darrell?” Lena says the voice in disbelief. “He’s the one doing all this?”

“We think so,” Kara nods, “that’s why we need to get you and Emma to the station. Just in case he shows up.”

Lena doesn’t say anything but Kara watches as the color seems to drain from her face and she shakes her head slightly. 

“Honey, it’s alright,” Kara says and she takes Lena’s hand, sitting her down on the edge of the bed. “I’m right here and Agent Arias is downstairs. We’re going to go to the station and we’re all going to be fine.”

Lena still doesn’t respond or make a move at all and Kara starts to worry when she hears footsteps on the stairs behind her. She turns just in time to see Sam reach the top of the stairs.

“We’re all clear downstairs,” Sam tells her with a nod, “Doors and windows are secure too.” Sam pauses, looking between Kara and Lena and asks, “Everything ok?”

“Yea, I think,” Kara says with a sigh. “Can you do me a favor and stay with her while I get Emma?”

“Of course,” Sam says as she steps inside the room. Kara leans forward and places a soft kiss on Lena’s cheek before she heads out of the room and down the hallway. 

“I know you’re scared,” Sam says in a low, comforting voice, “but we’ll make sure you and Emma are safe.”

“What about Kara?” Lena asks in barely a whisper. 

“Kara’s safe too,” Sam offers.

Lena shakes her head, a tear sliding down her face, “The last time, when Nate attacked us,” Lena stops, swallowing hard, “she could have died. If I hadn’t…” her voice breaks.

“If you hadn’t what?” Sam ask softly but Lena just shakes her head, tears coming down her face now.

Sam lays a comforting hand on her arm and says, “Kara didn’t die. She’s here, right down the hall, with Emma. Nothing is going to happen to you guys.”

Lena nods but the look on her face tells Sam that she doesn’t entirely believe her right now.

_Not that I can blame her_, Sam thinks to herself, _They’ve already been through hell with this guy and his brother_. 

Sam hears a door close down the hallway and the sound of Kara’s voice as she quietly talks to her daughter. 

“I know you’re sleepy baby,” Kara says as she walks down the hall, “you can go back to sleep when we get to the station.”

Kara reappears in the doorway of the room Sam and Lena are waiting in, now carrying a very sleepy brunette in her arms, Emma’s cheek resting on Kara’s shoulder. 

“You ready to go?” Sam asks and when Kara nods she stands, Lena with her. “I’ll go down first,” Sam says and heads down the stairs. 

Waiting patiently at the bottom of the stairs is Scout, looking concerned. 

“Don’t worry boy,” Sam says, patting the dog on the head, “You’re coming with too.”

**

“Are you sure you want to be back here already?” Maggie asks as Lucy unlocks the front door of the bar.

“I didn’t really get a chance to close up properly last night,” Lucy says as they step inside and she closes the door again. “I just need to check a few things and get the money out of the safe.”

“Not restocking?” Maggie asks as they make their way to the bar and Lucy walks to the register.

“Not today,” Lucy sighs, “I think I’m going to stay closed probably until Thursday. That gives me a few days to get everything straightened up.”

“And gives you a little down time too,” Maggie adds as she leans against the bar.

“That too,” Lucy admits with a nod. “I haven’t taken more than a day off in years and those were just over the holidays. I don’t think I’ll know what to do with three days off.”

“I’m sure we can come up with something,” Maggie says with a crocked smile that makes Lucy blush instantly. 

“You,” Lucy says, trying to hold back a smile, “are a bad influence.”

“I thought you liked my influence,” Maggie says as she walks to the open walkway that leads behind the bar.

Lucy shakes her head, pushing the register closed again she takes the few steps until she’s standing in front of Maggie. 

“You are still such a flirt,” Lucy smiles as she snakes her arms around Maggie’s neck.

“Was I supposed to stop because we slept together?” Maggie asks, raising an eyebrow in question. 

“So, you plan on flirting with me still?” Lucy asks and while she still wears a smile Maggie can see the hope and concern mixed in her eyes.

“Only until you get tired of me,” Maggie answers with a shrug as she rest her hands lightly on Lucy’s waist.

“Don’t see that happening,” Lucy says with a quick shake of her head.

“Better get used to the flirting then,” Maggie smiles and pulls Lucy closer and leans forward, placing a soft kiss on her lips. 

When she leans back a moment later her face is serious.

“What’s wrong?” Lucy asks slightly confused. 

Maggie shakes her head slightly and says, “Last night scared the hell out of me. When I got here and couldn’t get in because all the emergency vehicles and Alex’s Deputies not letting me through,” Maggie blows out a big sigh, looking down at the floor “I didn’t know if you were ok or not and it just…” 

“Hey,” Lucy says, reaching down and placing a finger under Maggie’s chin, lifting the medic’s face until she’s looking at Lucy again. “I’m not going anywhere, ok.”

Maggie doesn’t answer but nods her understanding. Lucy’s hand that was still resting wrapped around Maggie’s shoulder slides to the back of her head and pulls her close again, kissing her more fiercely than before. 

“Now that was sweet,” A voice says from the back of the bar, causing both of them to jump. Darrell steps out of the back room, gun drawn and continues, “but you shouldn’t lie Lucy. You are going somewhere. You’re coming with me.”

Maggie turns slowly, keeping her hands raise, until she’s facing Darrell, planting herself firmly between him and Lucy and says, “The hell she is.”

“Not the time to play hero,” Darrell snares at her, lifting his gun arm and aiming at Maggie. 

“Not planning on playing anything,” Maggie says with a slight shrug, hands still lifted, “I just want us to talk this over. We don’t have to do this.”

“The hell we don’t!” Darrell says, taking a step forward. “They’ve taken everything away from me. My brother, my blood, my passion. I won’t let you take her from me too.”

“I’m not trying to take anyone away,” Maggie says and slides half a step closer. She keeps her breathing even and makes sure that her weight is resting on her good leg, so she’s ready when the moment presents itself. 

“The hell you aren’t. I saw the two of you,” Darrell snarls again, pointing the gun from Maggie to Lucy and back again. “You come into town and act like you have the right to be here. Like you have the right just show up and mess everything up.”

“I wasn’t trying to mess anything up,” Maggie says with a small shake of her head, making sure to keep Darrell in her sights. “I just came here to see the Sheriff. She and I served together, that’s all.”

“You and the Sheriff,” Darrell nearly spites these words, “you go off and pretend to be soldiers, come back here all busted up and expect everyone to treat you like some hero. You aren’t. I am,” he says taking another step forward, putting him just within reaching distance for Maggie. “I stayed here. I learned how to become so much more. More than some soldier, or sheriff, or medic. I’m an artist,” Darrell says his eyes taking on a wild glare as he continues. “I take those girls, those lost girls and I make them something beautiful, something that will be remembered by everyone.”

“You’re the killer,” Lucy says in a whisper from behind Maggie. 

The sound is enough to draw Darrell’s attention from Maggie to Lucy and Maggie takes that opportunity to spring herself forward. She manages to get her hand on the gun and turn it back towards Darrell but he is not caught off guard as much as Maggie had been hoping he would and he manages to keep his grip on the weapon as he tries to side step her. 

_Son of a bitch is stronger than someone who smells this much like alcohol should be_, Maggie thinks to herself.

Maggie manages to stay with him, taking another step, this time on her bad leg, which brings her just short of where she’d prefer to be but she doesn’t let go either. Reaching behind his head Maggie manages to get one arm around his neck while still maintaining some control over where the gun is pointing. 

Darrell brings his elbow back and catches Maggie in the ribs, which knocks the air out of her and hurts like hell. She loses her grip around his neck but is able to bring her arm down across his gun arm and send the weapon sliding across the room. 

Maggie takes a step back and when Darrell lunges after her she reaches out, grabbing him by the back of the neck, and uses his own momentum to smack his head off the hard wood of the bar. There’s a loud crashing sound and he goes limp, falling to his knees but he’s quick to recover.

“Lucy, get the hell out of here,” Maggie says risking a look at Lucy. “Go get Alex.”

Lucy nods her head and begins to come out form behind the bar but Darrell id already back on his feet by then, a trail of blood running from the gash on his forehead down his face and into his left eye.

“She doesn’t go anywhere,” he snarls and rushes at Maggie, catching her in the middle and knock her flat on to the floor, landing on top of her. 

Maggie’s stunned as the back of her head makes contact with the hard floor and she does her best to shake off the dark edges that begin to cloud her vision. She brings her elbow down hard on Darrell’s back but it doesn’t seem to phase him. He rolls off her quickly and Maggie does her best to scramble after him, knowing without a doubt what he’s going for.

The gun she had managed to knock out of his hand early had come to rest beneath a bar stool a few feet away from where they had landed. 

Maggie tries to flip herself over but feels a sharp pain in her jaw and everything goes black for a split second as Darrell’s boot makes contact with her jaw, sending her back onto her back. She shakes it off and manages to come to her feet, dazed but steady enough to see that Darrell has already reached the gun and is now standing with one arm wrapped around Lucy’s shoulder, holding her in front of him. 

Maggie slowly raises her hands, looking at Lucy who has tears streaming down her face and she can feel blood pooling in her mouth from the kick. 

“I told you,” Darrell snarls, his words slurred from the head injury Maggie had managed to land, “she’s _mine_.”

Before Maggie has the chance to say anything or move she hears the gunshot, followed by a burning pain in her right temple before she drops back onto the floor. Her vision is blurry and she can just make out the feet in front of her as them shuffle towards the back of the bar. The last thing she hears before the blackness takes over is the sound of Lucy, calling her name.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cliffhanger, I know! On a positive note though, since I have finished writing this fic, I will be posting the last couple of chapters weekly. Next chapter will be up Christmas Day.


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The race to find Darrell heats up and more than one life hangs in the balance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas guy!!!!! Hope you guys are all having a great day.

“So what’s the significant of October?” Sam asks as she stands looking at the three bulletin boards in the conference room. She’d arrived back at the station about twenty minutes ago and had filled in Agent Henshaw, who had come back to the station after Brainy had told him that they had a suspect. 

“Darrell’s mother died in October,” Alex offers from her spot next to Brainy, who was typing away at his laptop. So far they’d been able to track Darrell’s movements over the border close to the dates of the first several victims had been found. 

“When was that?” Sam asks, turning to look at the Sheriff.

“I think he was in middle school,” Alex says trying to remember, “She was sick, cancer. I was a junior in high school when she died so I guess he would have been in seventh grade, Nate was in fifth.”

“What’s their father like?” Sam asks.

Alex sighs heavily and answers, “Pretty distant. It never seemed like he and the boys got along well. Both Darrell and Nate started getting into trouble after their mother died. Nothing bad, just teenage stuff.”

“Loss of a parent in adolescent years can have an affect on their development,” Sam says with a sigh, “but it’s hard to say for sure if that’s part of it. It does explain why all the numbered victims to be found in October.”

“Isn’t it strange to change murder styles like this?” Alex asks gesturing to the boards as she takes a step away from Brainy.

“Usually,” Sam admits with a nod, “but I think these ones,” Sam says as she points to the victims that were beaten to death, “were him getting his anger out. The other murders required him to focus and be calm.

Not exactly easy to do when you’re this level of angry.”

“So he kills these people so his calm enough to do the other ones?” Alex asks a bit skeptically. 

“It’s just a theory,” Sam says with a shrug, “We won’t know anything until we find him.”

“Which hopefully will be soon,” Agent Henshaw says as he walks back in to the room. “We’ve put out an APB on his truck and him. If he’s anywhere in town, we should be able to find him.”

“I should be out there,” Kara’s voice comes from the doorway.

“You are off this case,” Henshaw says, turning to look at her. “You have to be,” he adds gently, “if I let you keep working it any good attorney will tear our case apart.”

“He’s right Kara,” Alex says with a nod.

“Same goes for you Sheriff,” Henshaw adds turning back to her.

“Now wait a minute,” Alex says holding a hand up. “I’m the Sheriff, I can’t just sit this out completely.”

“He’s right Alex,” Sam says in a low voice from beside Alex. When Alex looks at her she adds, “If you go anywhere near him, it could jeopardize the entire case.”

“We can’t do nothing,” Kara says as she steps into the room. 

“Stay here,” Henshaw says to the sisters, “help Agent Arias and Dox follow the evidence and maybe help us find him.”

Alex doesn’t respond but Kara nods and says, “Yes, sir.”

“Good,” Henshaw nods, “I’m heading over to Darrell’s house, there may be something there to help us figure out where he’s gone.”

“We’ll let you know if we find anything,” Sam says to him as he leaves the room again. Once he leaves Sam turns back to Alex, “I know this can’t be easy, but trust me, it’s the best thing you can do.”

Alex closes her eyes, taking a deep breath, and nods her head once. 

“So we know why October is important to him,” Sam says, turning back to their work, “and the first victim was found in 2008, twelve years ago. Anything special happen that year?”

“I don’t know,” Alex answers with a shrug, “I wasn’t here then. I was in the Army.”

“He graduated high school,” Kara offers as she takes a seat at the conference table with a sigh.

Alex takes a seat across from her sister, “How are Lena and Emma doing?”

“Alright,” Kara nods, “Emma is sleeping on the couch in your office. Lena is with her.”

“She doing alright?” Sam asks. She’s been concerned about the other woman since she’d shut down slightly at the house. 

“Better,” Kara says looking to Sam. “None of this is ideal.”

“I don’t think any of us were expecting this case to come back to you like this,” Alex offers with a sigh. 

Kara sighs heavily, “When this is all over, I’m taking my girls somewhere as far away from all this as I can. We need a real vacation.”

“I think after all this we may all need a good vacation,” Alex offers her sister a weak smile which she is happy to see Kara return.

“When did Nate graduate high school?” Sam asks from behind Alex, her voice thoughtful.

“Same year as Lena and me,” Kara answers, “2010. Why?”

“October 2008 was victim marked number one,” Sam says, pointing to the pictures on the board, “Second was October 2009 but in 2010 it gets strange. There’s a victim three, but a day later there’s a victim one.”

“And in 2012 there was a victim four and two,” Alex says standing back up and following Sam’s eyes. “2014 was the same, victims five and three, but in 2016, a year after Nate goes to prison, it goes back to just one victim, number six.”

The room is quiet for a moment as it all sinks in.

“Son of a bitch,” Kara mutters. 

“They were both doing it,” Alex says a bit shocked. “Makes your run in with him in the parking lot scarier.”

“That means Nate was doing this while he was dating Lena,” Kara says, her voice low and worried. 

“Victims are usually chosen in place of the unsubs real desire,” Sam thinks out loud.

“But the Darrell’s first victim was brunette,” Alex says shaking her head, “He wouldn’t of picked a girl that looks like Lena, that doesn’t make sense.”

“Anyone else that matches the description of the victims here in town?” Sam asks, looking from Alex to Kara.

“My ex,” Alex shrugs, “but she left town the day after we graduated high school but Darrell was still in middle school then.”

“Lucy,” Kara says as she comes to her feet, “Darrell was always trying to get Lucy to go out with him in high school. He even asked her to the senior prom but she turned him down.”

“And he’s hit on her at the bar all the time,” Alex says as realization dawns on her. “Shit, Darrell’s real target is Lucy.”

“Where is she?” Kara asks.

“Her and Maggie went over to the bar to clean up after last night,” Alex says. 

“Sheriff,” Deputy Garcia runs up to the door of the conference room, “We just had a report of a gun being fired at Red’s.”

“Damn it,” Alex snarls as she and the others sprit from the room, following the young Deputy out of the station. 

Alex jumps into her cruiser, Sam sliding into the passenger seat says, “Guess there’s no way I can talk you out of doing this.” She doesn’t ask it, just buckles her seatbelt and sits back.

“Not a chance,” Alex says as she pulls away from the curb. “I’ve known Lucy all my life and I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for Maggie.”

“Can you just do me one favor?” Sam asks as they take the only corner leading to the bar.

“What’s that?” Alex asks.

“Try not to shoot him if he’s here,” Sam says with just the hint of a smile.

“Can’t make any promises,” Alex says with a dry chuckle. 

“Worth a try,” Sam mumbles as they pull up in front of the bar. Both her and the Sheriff get out of the cruiser, drawing their weapons as they do. Alex reaches the front door first, reaching down she turns the doorknob slightly. When she’s met with no resistance, she gives Sam a short nod and pushes open the door.

Alex can hear tires coming to a halt outside and know that Kara and Deputy Garcia are right behind them. Carefully stepping through the doorway Alex scans the room and notices that all the inside lights are on, despite it looking like no one was here. 

She rounds a corner of the bar and her stomach nearly bottoms out when she sees Maggie laying on the floor, a pool of blood by her head. 

“Maggie,” Alex says, shoving her revolver back in to its holster and rushing over to her. Leaning down she sees that the other woman’s chest is still raising and falling and breaths slightly easier. 

“Is she alive?” Sam asks, standing behind Alex and watching the room. Kara and Deputy Garcia arrive and Sam tells them, “Clear the building.” Neither one of them says anything but they break up and start searching the bar. 

After a moment Sam glances down at Alex and says, “Alex, is she alive?”

“Yea,” Alex says as she moves Maggie’s head slightly to the side, “Looks like she got lucky. This wound on the side of her head, looks like she got grazed by a bullet. She’s alive but its still bleeding.”

“Building is clear,” Kara says as she rounds the bar and sees Maggie laying on the floor, “Is she…”

“She’s still alive,” Alex says, “Kara, go get the first aid kit out of my cruiser and get a ambulance over here.”

“Right,” Kara says and disappears out the front of the bar. 

“Maggie,” Alex says as she moves Maggie’s head enough to get a better look at the wound, “Can you hear me Maggie?”

Maggie stirs slightly, trying to speak but it comes out an incoherent mumble. 

“Maggie, can you hear me?” Alex asks again and is rewarded with Maggie’s eyes fluttering open.

“Alex,” Maggie manages after swallowing hard, “What the hell is going on?”

“You’ve been shoot,” Alex answers her, blowing out a breath of relief.

“Not the first time,” Maggie says and tries to sit up.

“Hey, stay down,” Alex warns with a hand on her shoulder, it doesn’t take much force to keep her down and that concerns Alex. “We called an ambulance.”

“Ambulance,” Maggie mutters shaking her head and sounding confused by the word.

Kara comes back in with the med kit and kneels on the opposite side of Maggie from Alex. Flippin open the kit she pulls out some gauze pads and a roll of cling. 

“Maggie, I ‘m going to bandage up your head and try to get the bleeding stopped,” Kara tells her and Maggie’s eyes open again.

She smiles slightly and says, “Kara Hood to the rescue.”

Kara throws her a smile back and says, “Well, she may be a little loopy from the blood loss but at least she recognized me.”

“Maggie, can you tell me what happened?” Alex asks as Kara places the gauze pad to the side of Maggie’s head. 

“We came in to clean up the bar,” Maggie says, she pauses a moment then her eyes snap open. “Lucy,” she says and her voice is now laced with panic. “Alex, where’s Lucy?”

“She’s not here,” Alex says flatly worry entering her own voice.

“He’s got her,” Maggie says and this time manages to sit up before either of the Danvers sisters can stop her. “Darrell, he came in talking crazy and pulled a gun on us. Kept talking about how they were taking everything away from him and how he wouldn’t let me take Lucy too. Alex, where are they?”

“I don’t know,” Alex says with a shake of her head she looks up at Sam concerned. Looking back at Maggie she says, “You sit here and let Kara finish bandaging you up until the ambulance gets here.”

“I’m not going to the hospital,” Maggie starts to object but Alex cuts her off with a wave of the hand. 

“This isn’t up for debate,” Alex says a little shorter than she had intended, “You literally just got shoot in the head. You need stitches, cleaned up and a head CT.” She closes her eyes for a moment, taking an deep breath and letting it out, she looks back at Maggie and says, “You have to trust me on this. I’ll bring her back.”

Whether from the blood loss or Alex’s words Maggie nods and lets Kara finish wrapping the gauze around her head. 

Alex stands up, places her hand on Sam’s elbow and leads her a few steps away before saying, “How much danger is Lucy in right now?”

Sam hesitates before answering, “It’s hard to say for sure. She’s clearly been the object of his obsession for a long time. He could just want to take her someplace where he can finally be alone with her.”

“Then what happens?” Alex asks, though she’s sure she doesn’t want to hear the answer. 

Sam doesn’t answer but the look on her face is all Alex needs to spur her into motion and she heads towards the back of the bar.

“Sheriff,” Sam says, following her through the back of the bar and into the alley where they had stood the previous night. 

“He would have been parked out here,” Alex says, as much to herself as to Sam, “that’s the only way they wouldn’t have known he was here. So he would have had to head this way,” Alex continues as she begins walking down the alleyway towards the main street.

“Alex,” Sam says, reaching out and grabbing the other woman’s hand to stop her. “We already have an APB out for Darrell and his truck. Agents Henshaw and Olsen are heading this way and their looking for Darrell right now. You need to stop.”

“I can’t,” Alex says with a shake of her head. “Not until we find him and not until Lucy is safe.”

“Alright,” Sam says with a nod, “but I’m staying with you. Let’s go back inside and see what Maggie can tell us.”

Alex hesitates a heartbeat but then nods and follows Sam back inside. 

**

An hour later they had all returned to the station. Maggie, who was now at the hospital, had told them that Darrell had not given any indication as to where he would be taking Lucy. 

“That was Agent Henshaw,” Sam says as she lowers her phone from her ear. “They’re still searching Darrell’s house but he said that it looks like no one has been living there for a while.”

“Great,” Alex mumbles under her breath as she looks at a map spread out over the conference room’s long table, a map of the county. 

“He never talked about having another property or owning land?” Sam asks, looking down at the map too. The county, while not highly populated, covered a large piece of land, running all the way up to the border with Canada.

“No,” Alex shakes her head in frustration. “We weren’t exactly on friendly tones most of the time we worked together.”

“Fair,” Sam says with a nod. “Family?”

“Just his father and Nate,” Alex sighs, “Nate’s been in prison for five years and his father died three years ago. All his property was taken by the county for pass due taxes for years. There’s literally a hundred places he could be out there in the woods and we’d never find him.”

The pain and frustration in Alex’s voice is nearly enough to break Sam’s heart and she lays a supportive hand on the Sheriff’s shoulder. Brainy had gone to Darrell’s house with Henshaw to help go through his home computer so that left just Alex and Sam in the station at the moment.

The shoulder under her touch is tight and she knows that, no matter what the outcome, Alex will blame herself and carry that weight with her probably for the rest of her life. Alex doesn’t look up from the map and shakes her head again.

“Alex,” Sam says softly and Alex turns her head to look at her. Those brown eyes that Sam has found herself looking into so much the last twenty-four hours now seem clouded with pain and anger. Sam has to force herself to swallow around a sudden lump that forms in her throat and says, “We’ll find him and Lucy, alive.”

“I hope you’re right,” Alex says looking back at the map. There’s a moment of silence and she says, “You know, I’ve watched Maggie and Lucy flirt and dance around their feelings for years. They finally, finally get together and this happens the very next day. It’s not fair.”

“It’s not,” Sam agrees and starts gently rubbing small circles on Alex’s shoulder, “Things rarely ever fall on the fair side of things.”

“Guess you see that a lot,” Alex says with a short chuckle.

“More often than I’d like,” Sam answers with a nod, “but it goes with the job. We deal with the ugly things people do to each other every day, do what we can to give them closure and peace and hope that we make a difference. It’s not usually fair but sometimes we do get happy endings out of it.”

“If you’re about to tell me to close my eyes and clap and bring tinker bell back to life I may actually vomit,” Alex says but Sam can feel the muscles under her hand start to relax just a little.

“Very funny,” Sam says holding back a smile and giving Alex’s shoulder a playful nudge. 

Alex straightens up and looks at Sam with a small smile, the best she can muster under the current situation and says, “Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it,” Sam says with a nod as her phone starts to ring again. She snatches it off the table and answers it.

Alex watches as Sam’s face contorts to a neutral face and Alex can’t tell if it’s good news or bad. 

“I’m on my way,” Sam says quickly, hanging up the phone and shoving it into her pocket. She looks at Alex and says, “They’ve found Darrell, he’s in his truck and won’t stop. They’re headed towards town and I’m going to see if I can run interference.”

“I’m going with you,” Alex says taking a step forward.

“Alex,” Sam starts to argue but stops when Alex levels a look at her. “Alright, fine,” Sam says with a sigh, “but I’m driving.”

“Whatever you say,” Alex says and follows Sam out of the room. 

In a few minutes they’re heading down main street a bit faster than the posted speed limit.

“Are you going to make a joke about breaking the law?” Sam asks with a half smile.

“Considering the fact that we’re trying to catch a serial killer,” Alex says over the sound of the siren, “I think I’ll give you a pass this time.”

“Thanks,” Sam says as she makes a turn three streets from downtown. She’d flipped on her radio as soon as they’d gotten into the car and was listening to the pursuit to try and guess the best way to cut Darrell off.

“Take the next left,” Alex offers and Sam risks throwing her a glance. Alex shrugs and says, “Trust me.”

Without a word Sam takes the next left and a few blocks later they see Darrell’s old black and white pickup truck heading straight towards them.

“Doesn’t look like he’s planning on stopping,” Sam says tightening her grip on the steering wheel.

Alex looks from the approaching truck to Sam and back again, a smile forming on her lips as she realizes what the agent is planning on doing and says, “Yea, I’m really starting to like you.”

Sam is thankful for their current situation because it keeps Alex from seeing the blush that creeps up her cheeks at the comment.

When the truck is within a few yards of them Sam says into her radio, “Alright Henshaw, now.”

Alex holds her breath as the vehicle driven by Agent Henshaw, the one following closely behind Darrell, revs up and hits the back of the truck on the driver’s side causing the truck to swerve to the right. When Darrell tries to correct Sam speeds forward, turning the wheel so that the driver’s side of their vehicle strikes the passenger side of Darrell’s, stopping the truck. 

The impact causes Alex’s head to hit the door and for a moment things go black.

_ She doesn’t remember the explosion or what was happening prior to it. All she knows is that when she opens her eyes she can’t make sense of the world around her for several seconds. _

_ There’s the sound of something popping, it remind her of the camp fires she would sit around during the summer, roasting marshmallows with her cousins after spending the day on the water fishing or just goofing off. _

_ Another sound, one of metal scrapping against metal. It makes her think of that old truck she’d bought her first summer after getting her license, the one that almost always had something falling off of it or braking. _

_ She thinks she hears voices somewhere in the distance, too far away to actually understand, but still close enough to know that there are people nearby. She knows this should worry her but in that moment she can’t seem to remember why. _

_ The first thing she sees that makes any sense is the radio sitting in front of her. It had been installed into the dash of the Humvee so that the person riding shotgun would be able to radio for backup at a moments notice. Unfortunately for her, she hadn’t had that moment to call for help. _

_ It’s seeing the radio that reminds her of where she is and the noise around her suddenly start to make sense. She’d been riding in the front seat of the Humvee while they had been driving through a small village. Of all the trips she’s made across this part of the country during her time there, this had been one of the simplest. They were just riding escort for a refueling truck, nothing big, nothing important. _

_ She tries to move her head and realizes that she can’t. There’s a sharp pain on the left side of her head and she can’t seem to move her left arm either. There’s the briefest moment of panic until she’s able to bring her right hand up and feel the back of her head. _

_ Or at least, to try to. There’s a piece of metal, probably blown in from somewhere behind her, that sits tight against the back of her skull. She doesn’t know how she’s alive but judging by the smell coming from the back of the truck, she won’t be if she stays still._

_ Despite the pain she manages to pull her left arm across her chest and tries to move herself but finds that she’s so dizzy and that her vision, which has always been good, is blurred to the point that she’s having a hard time seeing. Moving only seems to make it all worse but she has to. She knows that if she sits here too long, if whoever did this to her Humvee is close by, they’ll be here to make sure that their device did the job. _

_ “Come on,” she says to herself. She’s fortunate to discover that the explosion had removed the already half destroyed door that had been there when she’d entered the vehicle. _

_ With one more push she manages to heave herself out of the Humvee and on to the hot sand that covers the road, at least what’s left of it. Pain flares in her head and shoulder, white hot and sharp pain, and all she can see is red._

_Giving herself a moment to catch her breath she looks back at what she’s just crawled out of and finds herself unable to catch her breath at the sight she sees._

_ The Humvee that, only a few moments ago, had carried her plus three other soldiers is a smoking pile of twisted metal. Other than the seat she had pulled herself from it’s nearly impossible to tell that the pile of metal had been a vehicle not long before. _

_ She feels a twist in her gut as she realizes that there is no way those in the back had survived. She hadn’t known them long but long enough to know there would be grieving families back home soon._

_ Mustering whatever strength she can she manages to drag herself, slowly, inch by inch, around the front of the Humvee. Her driver, there’s still a chance that her driver survived. _

_ When she reaches the other side of the vehicle she let’s herself collapse onto the hot ground again. It’s clear from here that the explosion must have happened on the driver’s side near the back. There’s nothing left. _

_ Knowing that she’s on her own until another unit reaches them, and knowing that she doesn’t even have the strength to stand she sinks lower on to the road. Before her eyes slide closed she thinks of her family. Of her mother and her sister and how much she’ll miss them._

The sound of gun fire brings Alex back to the present moment and she opens her eyes. Looking around she sees Darrell, gun out and firing, as he runs across the street, away from the vehicles now blocking the entire road. 

Alex glances to her left and sees Sam who looks as though she just came too as well. 

“I’m ok,” Sam says to Alex. “my door’s just stuck Go.”

Alex doesn’t hesitates, and shoves open the door of the vehicle, drawing her weapon as she does. 

She’s fortunate that Darrell hasn’t seen her yet and she makes her way around the back of the vehicle, leveling her revolver at him she says in a loud but clear voice, “Darrell! Drop it!”

When he turns towards her, a smile crosses his face and his lifts his gun towards her.

Without hesitation Alex fires, once, and watches as Darrell’s gun fall from his hand, his right shoulder bleeding from the well placed shot.

Before he has the chance to reach for the gun with his left hand Agent Olsen tackles him to the ground. It takes a moment but he’s joined by Agent Henshaw and they have Darrell handcuffed in no time.

Alex turns around in time to see Sam sliding out of the driver’s side window. 

Alex chuckles and says, “You Dukes of Hazarded it.”

A smile spreads instantly across Sam’s face and she can’t stop the chuckle that escapes her. 

“Well,” she said as she steps up to Alex, “I had a feeling you’d like to see that in person.”

Alex laughs once and sighs, looking over as Olsen and Henshaw shove a still bleeding Darrell into the back of their car.

“You didn’t kill him,” Sam says as she watches Alex.

“We still need to find Lucy,” Alex says simply, “and I don’t like to kill people.”

Before Sam can say anything else Alex hears her name called by one of the Deputies on the other side of the street.

Alex feels her blood run cold when she sees Deputies Garcia and Morris crouched next to Deputy Martinez who lays on the street, a dark red spot growing from her abdomen.

“Shit,” Alex says and sprints across the street. “I need an ambulance,” she calls into the radio on her shoulder, “Officer down.”

She reaches her Deputies and they move aside so that she can crouch next to Martinez on the street. In the next moment Sam is beside her, medical kit in hand and already pulling gauze from it. 

“Put pressure on the wound,” Sam says as she goes to hand gauze to Alex but finds that the Sheriff isn’t moving. “Alex,” Sam says, a bit forcefully, and when the Sheriff looks at her she says again, “Take the gauze and hold pressure on her wound.”

“Right,” Alex manages to answer this time. She presses the gauze against the gun shot and watches as her young deputy winces. “You’re going to be alright,” she tells her.

_ “You’re going to be alright,” Alex says to the soldier laying on the ground in front of her. She hadn’t seen him take the hit but the blood coming from his abdomen tells her all she needs to know._

_ “You’re going to be alright,” she repeats and the look in her eyes tells her that he doesn’t believe her. “Medic! I need a Medic!” Alex calls. _

_ A second later Maggie slides to her knees beside Alex, “Hey there pal,” she says to the soldier on the ground. “What’s your name?”_

_ “Steve,” he manages to say though he sounds out of breath with the effort. _

_ “Hey there Stevie,” Maggie says, pulling more gauze out of her pack and starting to work, “I’m Maggie. Well, Margaret but I never liked that name so I go by Maggie. You know what’s that like right?”_

_ He nods but Alex notices blood on his lip that wasn’t there before._

_ Maggie hasn’t stopped working but she continues to talk to him, doing her best to keep him calm. In another minute he Steve starts to cough, more blood appearing with each cough. _

_ “We’ve got you,” Alex says to him, “You’re going to be alright.”_

“Alex,” she hears Sam’s voice and looks over, seeing her face like it’s the first time today. When Sam’s sure she has Alex’s eyes she adds, “the ambulance is here. Let them take her.”

Alex looks around and sees the ambulance crew running towards them. Once they reach them and tale over holding pressure on the wound, Alex stands up and takes a few stumbling steps away. Trying to clear her head, she runs her hands over her face only to find that her face is now covered in something sticky. That’s when she realizes there’s blood all over her hands. 

“Alex,” Sam’s voice again, this time much gentler and there’s a hand on her arm, not a threatening one but a calming one, one that pulls Alex back to the now. She locks eyes with the other woman and Sam says, “Come on. We’ll meet them at the hospital and get you cleaned up.”

Alex nods dumbly and let’s Sam direct her to another vehicle, one that Brainy had driven from Darrell’s house, where the chase had apparently started.

“Is she ok?” Alex hears Brainy asks as she slides into the back seat of the vehicle. There’s no missing the worry in the young agents voice.

“She will be,” Sam says, “Can you drive us to the hospital?” 

“Yea, absolutely,” Brainy says and there’s the sound of car doors opening and closing.

It isn’t until she feels that calming presence again, taking a hold of her hand, that she realizes Sam has slide in to the back seat with her. 

“I have blood on my hands,” Alex says and it’s not lost on her the irony of the words.

“I know,” Sam nods but instead of letting go, she squeezes tighter, “but I’m not letting go. Not until you’re ok.”

Instead of answering her Alex turns her hand over, linking their fingers together.


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nate is in custody and they race the clock to try and find Lucy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this is late, had a family emergency with my step daughter, that took a few days to resolve. Here it is though. Two more chapters to go!!

Alex couldn’t tell how long they’d been driving but by the time to vehicle pulled to a stop in front of the emergency room doors it had gotten dark. She knew that didn’t mean much,_ It always seems to get dark so quickly this time of the year._ Alex knows that the hospital is only a twenty minute drive from downtown. 

“Brainy, head back to the station and pick up Lena and Emma,” she hears Sam’s voice through the fog in her head. “Kara’s already here with Maggie and I have a feeling we’re likely to be here for some time.”

Alex hears the door open and close and a few seconds later the door beside her opens as well.

“Come on,” Sam says to her softly, “let’s get inside and see if we can get you cleaned up.”

Alex nods and climbs out of the vehicle, taking Sam’s hand as she does and allowing the agent to lead her into the emergency room waiting area.

Sam leads them to the small desk next to the double doors that lead from the waiting room to the emergency department beyond. 

The nurse that sits behind the desk looks from Sam to Alex and back again before saying, “Can I help you?”

“There’s an ambulance coming in behind us,” Sam answers quickly, “bringing in one of the Sheriff’s Deputies.” Sam pauses looking back at Alex before continuing, “Is there some place where the Sheriff can get cleaned up before they get here?”

The nurse hesitates before nodding and standing from her chair. She walks around the desk and using her ID badge, opens the doors leading back to the department.

“There’s a staff locker room you can use,” she answers as she leads the way, rounding a corner and swiping her badge again to let them into the small locker room. “There’s a shower and stack of towels against the back wall,” before the nurse leaves she takes Sam’s arm and asks in a low voice, “Is the Sheriff alright?”

Alex, who had let go of Sam’s hand when they were shown into the room sits down on a long bench that sits in front of a small row of sinks. 

Sam looks at Alex for a moment before she nods her head to the nurse and says, “Yea, she just needs to get cleaned up.”

The nurse doesn’t say anything else but turns and closes the door behind her, leaving Alex and Sam alone in the room. Sam leans against the closed door for a moment, taking advantage of the moment to take a breath. 

Sam watches Alex as she sits on the bench, blank look on her face, eyes dark and she can’t help but wonder what’s going through the other woman’s mind in that moment. As though she could hear Sam’s thoughts Alex shakes her head slightly and squeezes her eyes shut.

The pained look that comes to her face is enough to put Sam back into motion and she pushes off the door. Grabbing a few small towels, she steps up to the sink in front of Alex and turns on the water, waiting a moment until the water warms up then wets down one of the towels. 

“Here,” she says softly as she turns around and hands the wet towel to Alex, “for your hands.”

Alex numbly takes the towel and starts lightly scrubbing at the blood on her hands. Sam turns back to the sink, washing her own hands clean and grabbing a second towel for Alex. 

“I just can’t make it right,” Alex finally says something. It’s the first thing she’s said since they had gotten into the SUV back in town. “Doesn’t seem to matter what I do, I can’t make it right.”

“Make what right?” Sam asks as she turns around to look at the Sheriff.

Alex slowly turns her gaze from the floor to the woman standing before her, looking as though she had forgotten for a moment that she wasn’t alone. There’s a hesitation but then Alex continues.

“When I left for the army, I didn’t go alone,” Alex’s voice is low and she shakes her head again. “I enlisted with my best friend growing up, Steve. Being from such a small area we were able to convince the recruiter to send us to boot camp at the same time and made sure that we ended up stationed together afterwards too.”

Sam doesn’t interrupt but takes a step and sits beside Alex on the bench.

“We figured that, we’d done everything else together, we wanted to do this too,” Alex closing her eyes briefly. “He died in my arms five months before I got hurt,” her voice breaks and a sob escapes her.

Sam feels her heart break at the sound and she wraps an arm around Alex’s shoulders. 

“When I came home, I went to see his parents and all I could say was that I was sorry,” Alex continues, her voice so small, “I see them around town and, even though they said they don’t blame me, I feel like I’m still trying to make it right.”

“Alex,” Sam says calmly as rubs her hand up and down Alex’s arms. 

“You don’t understand,” Alex sighs loudly. “My brother, Steve, and now Heather. I don’t know how to make this right. I don’t know if I can ever do enough. I’m going to be trapped here for the rest of my life,” Alex shakes her head.

“Alex, sweetie,” Sam says as she moves from beside Alex to crouch in front of her, taking both of Alex’s hands in her own. “Listen to me, none of this is your fault,” Sam says and when Alex starts to shake her head she reaches up and makes sure that the Sheriff is looking at her. “Heather and Steve, they both knew what they were signing up for. You aren’t responsible for the things that happen.”

Alex doesn’t say anything, and Sam carefully takes the towel from her hand and begins to carefully wipe the blood from Alex’s hands. 

“You’ve taken the responsibility of this entire town on to your shoulders,” Sam continues, “that’s a lot for anyone to take on for themselves.”

“It’s what I was supposed to do,” Alex says with a sigh and shake of her head, “What I knew I had to do.” Alex’s voice has taken on a faraway tone again and Sam places the now dirty towel on the floor. She picks up the clean towel that she’d left on the bench and slowly reaches up, placing a finger under Alex’s chin. 

Sam slowly reaches up and starts to wipe the dried blood from Alex’s face, “No one can make that decision for you. This is your life and you don’t owe this town your life.”

As Sam continues to clean the blood from Alex’s face she watches as the other woman’s eyes slowly begin to clear and Sam forces a small smile.

“Hey there Alex, sweetheart,” Sam says and waits until the Sheriff’s eyes meet hers, “are you back with me?”

There’s a moment and then Alex nods, offering her a small smile. 

“Alright,” Sam smiles back at her and stands. “We should go out and find Kara and Maggie, let them know we caught Darrell.”

“I need to check in on Deputy Martinez,” Alex says, coming to her feet as well.

“Let’s find your sister first,” Sam offers, putting a hand on Alex’s arm, “hopefully give her some piece of mind. Plus, we should probably give the doctors some time with Deputy Martinez first.”

Alex looks like she’s going to argue but instead nods her head, her features seeming to settle into the mask that Sam had noticed when she had first met the woman and Alex’s shoulder straighten.

Sam hesitates, hating to see the woman slip back behind her defenses but knowing that now is not the time to address it. With one last look Sam opens the door and the two women step out into the hallway. 

It doesn’t take them long to find the room where Maggie is being treated, Kara pacing in the hallway outside. 

“Alex,” Kara says, sounding a bit confused as Alex and Sam walk up to her, “What’s going on? Are you ok?” Clearly Kara can see there’s still something off about her sister.

“I’m fine,” Alex answers firmly with a nod, “We found Darrell, Agents Henshaw and Olsen are bringing him here right now.”

“Here, why?” Kara asks, lifting an eyebrow.

“I may have shot him,” Alex hesitates, “a little.”

“How do you shoot someone a little?” Kara asks with a chuckle. 

“It was just in the shoulder,” Alex shrugs and she smiles a little, “There was a shoot out downtown after the car chase.”

Kara is silent before laughing and saying, “Why is it I miss everything?”

“You didn’t miss much,” Sam offers, laying a hand on Alex’s upper arm as she talks, “Deputy Martinez was hurt and they’re bringing her in now too.”

“Damn,” Kara mutters under her breath and shaking her head.

“How’s Maggie?” Alex asks.

“Good,” Kara looks back at her sister with a nod, “they stitched her head up and are getting a CT right now. They want to keep her overnight but she’s fighting them on that. Says she’s not staying until she knows that Lucy is safe.”

“That doesn’t surprise me,” Alex sighs, “Hopefully Olsen and Henshaw get something out of Darrell.”

“What about Lena and Emma?” Kara speaks up, concern in her voice.

“I sent Brainy back to the station to get them,” Sam answers with a small smile, “I figured we’d all be here a while and it’d be better to have them here.”

“Thank you,” Kara says to Sam for what feels like the tenth time that day. While she didn’t know Sam well the other woman had been there for her family so much in the past few days that Kara knows she can trust her.

Before another word is said between the women the doors to the ER fly open and an ambulance litter is rolled inside, a crowd of people around it, and disappears into the only trauma bay the small hospital has.

Alex is surprised to see her mother as part of the group that disappears inside.

“What’s mom doing here?” she asks, turning back to look at Kara. “She’s supposed to be at the station with Lena and Emma.”

“I know,” Kara says, holding her hands up in defense, “I asked her the same thing when we got here. Apparently she told the unit that came to get her that she was safe here and wasn’t leaving.”

“I see where you two get your stubbornness from,” Sam mutters but both Alex and Kara hear and look at her. “What?” Sam asks with a shrug, “it’s true.”

Alex looks back at her sister, who simply shrugs her shoulders, saying, “She’s not wrong.”

**

“How bad is his shoulder?” Alex asks from the observation room. They’d placed Darrell in one of the rooms used to observe potential psych patients, the only room in the department that was equipped with a two way mirror. 

“Not bad at all,” Eliza says from beside Alex. She hadn’t treated Darrell’s injury but had snuck a peak at his chart. “The bullet went clean through, didn’t knick the bone and missed all the major arties, it just needs to heal and he’ll be fine.” 

“Should have aimed higher,” Alex mumbles under her breath but her mother still hears her.

“Alex, that is no way to talk,” Eliza says, turning to face her oldest child. “You do the right thing.”

“Your mother’s right,” Sam says, stepping into the room with them. “We at least have a chance to get some answers out of him now.”

“We better find something out soon,” Alex replies with a heavy sigh, “Lucy’s still out there and the temperature is only going to keep getting colder overnight.”

“That’s why I’m going to talk to him now,” Sam answers and is surprised by the look that comes to the Sheriff’s face. It’s a mix of shock and concern and Sam isn’t sure how to respond so she simply says, “I’ve done this kind of interview before.”

“It’s not that,” Alex says with a shake of her head, “he’s dangerous and…”

“He’s also hurt and handcuffed,” Sam says with an appreciative smile, “I’ll be alright.”

Sam then slips out of the room and a moment later she appears in the room with Darrell, who’s been handcuffed to the rails of the hospital bed he lays in.

“Mr. Schreider,” Sam says as she sets a heavy file down on the table that sits across the bed, “I’d call you Deputy but I have a feeling that title no longer applies to you.”

Darrell doesn’t respond, just glares at Sam as she comes to a stop next to the bed. Sam titles her head in thought and stares right back at Darrell.

After a moment she asks, “So, who helped you do all this?”

Darrell continues to not answer.

“I mean, let’s be honest here,” Sam says as she reaches over and flips open the file, revealing a picture of the first victim, “you don’t have the patience or knowledge to pull something like this off yourself.”

Alex chuckles a little at that, causing her mother’s gaze to drift from the scene in front of them to her daughter’s face. Despite the short chuckle, worry and concern still clouded Alex’s face and her eyes never left the agent.

“In and out of trouble since middle school,” Sam continues as she pulls out the sheet on Darrell’s past. “Arrested for a few minor incidents, and barely graduated high school. No college, no other education other than when you went to the county police academy. You don’t have the education alone to have pulled this off.”

“You don’t know a damn thing,” Darrell snarls at her. 

“Actually, I do,” Sam says with a tight smile, “I know that you’ve been pretty much a nothing the majority of your life. I know that your mother died when you were in middle school and that your father never really liked you at all. I know you’ve been a below average deputy the entire length of your career.”

“That what the Sheriff told you?” Darrell asks with a shake of his head, “She doesn’t know anything either. The only reason she’s even Sheriff is because everyone in this dead end town feels like it’s her birthright or some shit like that.” Darrel shifts his gaze from Sam to the window behind her. 

Alex knows he can’t see through it and doesn’t know who’s watching but she swears his eyes burn into her as he says, “All she does is get people killed.”

Alex feels the muscles across her shoulders tense at the words and her mother reaches out a hand and lays it on her arm.

“From what I’ve seen,” Sam says coolly, “the only one around here killing people is you.” She flips over the top picture to reveal more. “Eighteen actually, of course that’s not counting the ones your brother did.”

Darrell’s eyes snap back to Sam, “My brother didn’t do anything.”

“Now you’re lying again,” Sam says with a sigh, “we know that Nate is responsible for at least these three,” Sam says as she lays out the pictures on front of him, “and if I had to venture a guess I’d say he’s responsible for at least two of the body we found beaten to death.” Sam pauses before she adds, “Anger issues seem to be a problem in your family.”

“Doesn’t matter,” Darrell says his voice dripping with venom, “Those two bitches sent him to prison. You want to know who the real bad guy is here? Take a look on the other side of that mirror,” he says gesturing with his head to the mirror behind Sam. 

“I don’t think you understand what a bad guy is,” Sam says simply.

“Bullshit,” Darrell spits. “Everyone cast those two in some kind of hero light when in reality they’re the farthest from it. Sheriff takes off and goes to play soldier, gets her best friend killed then comes home and acts like a hero, brings that fucking medic back here too,” Darrell chuckles at the mention of Maggie. “She’s not a problem anymore though.”

“Really?” Sam asks and waits him out. This was always the difficult part of interrogation, the waiting, but Sam knows that he can’t help himself, that he has to finish now that he’s started.

“Really,” Darrell responds after several moments had passed, “She thought she’d come in to my town and take my girl,” Darrell’s voice continues to raise as he talks, “She actually thought that Lucy would want her when she could have me.”

“That’s the thing Darrell,” Sam cuts in. “Lucy doesn’t want you, she’s been turning you down since middle school.”

“Doesn’t matter,” he says, shaking his head, “she’ll see, she’s mine. She’ll see, I’ll make her.”

“Is that what all this was?” Sam asks, gesturing to the pictures laid out on the table. “This was you showing her?”

“He said he could help me,” Darrell says and it amazes Alex how low his voice had suddenly become. He’d gone from sounding like a raging psycho to a small child.

Again, Sam remains quiet.

“He told me that he could show me ways to make Lucy realize that I was something,” Darrell says his voice rising again just a bit, “He told me he cold show me how to make Lucy realize that I’m special, that I’m better than all of them.”

“Who showed you?” Sam asks, managing to keep her voice level still.

“My mentor,” Darrell answers, voice going quiet again, “He found me in high school and promised he could show me how to make girls beautiful works of art. He told me that, if I practiced I would become an artist, like him.”

“Who’s your mentor?” Sam asks and Darrell immediately starts shaking his head.

“My mentor,” is his only reaction.

“Where’s Lucy?” Sam says after another long stretch of silence.

“Somewhere where she’s safe,” is Darrell’s only answer.

“You’re in here,” Sam says, gesturing around the room, “she’s not safe if she’s alone out there somewhere.”

“She’s safe,” Darrell says again, much too calmly for Alex’s liking.

“He’s not going to tell us where she is,” Alex mutters out loud.

“Let me talk to him,” Kara’s voice comes from behind Alex and she turns around to see her sister standing in the doorway of the observation room.

“Not a chance,” Alex says immediately with a shake of her head. “I’m already not happy about Sam being in there, there’s no way in hell I’m letting you in there too.”

“He’s not going to tell her anything,” Kara argues, “If I go in there, I can get him mad. He might just slip up and say something.”

Alex was shaking her head before her sister had finished talking, “No, absolutely not. Right now he’s controlled, calm. Give Sam a bit longer to work on him.”

“How’s Maggie?” their mother asks, looking to move the conversation to something different. She didn’t like the idea of her youngest daughter in the same room with that man any more than Alex did. 

“She’s good,” Kara nods, “CT was clear but she’s still trying to leave. Says she wants to talk to you,” Kara says looking to Alex. 

“Yea,” Alex nods with a glance back at Sam through the mirror. She hated the idea of leaving now but also knew that it was her best bet to keep Maggie here. “I’ll be right back,” Alex says to her sister and adds sternly, “Do no go in there unless something happens.”

Kara nods her agreement and Alex steps past her and into the hallway. The emergency department here wasn’t that big so it only took her a few seconds to make it back to Maggie’s room. She stepped inside and around the curtain, seeing her friend back in a hospital bed brought Alex back to when Maggie had been hurt years ago.

_Maggie was laying on the plain white sheets of the hospital bed, leg bandaged and held up by a pully system at the foot of the bed. Well, what was left of her leg anyway. _

_ They’d had to do another surgery the night before Alex had arrived at the hospital. The infection that had been causing so much trouble had finally reached the point where, if they hadn’t taken the leg, it would have killed her. _

_ The woman Alex had always known to be fun and full of life now looked drained and exhausted. She laid there, not moving, eyes closed and for a moment Alex thinks that she should leave, come back later when Maggie is awake but then the other woman’s eyes open. _

_ There’s a moment of recollection in Maggie’s eyes that is instantly followed by one of pain and despair. _

“How’s your head?” Alex asks when Maggie looks at her. Her head in bandaged and wrapped and Alex can see a bruise starting along her jawline.

“Where’s Lucy?” Maggie asks in place of an answer.

“We don’t know,” Alex admits with a sigh.

“I’m not staying here if she’s still out there,” Maggie says as she starts to sit up. Moving too quickly she makes herself dizzy and has to lay back down.

“You’re not going out there either,” Alex says with a shake of her head. “You wouldn’t make it five steps outside this door before you’d fall over. You took one hell of a beating and you have to rest.”

“How am I supposed to rest when you don’t know where she is?” Maggie asks and her voice catches, “or if she’s even still…”

“She’s alive,” Alex says flatly and when Maggie looks at her she continues, “I know she is and I’m going to find her. You have to trust me on this.”

“I was so stupid,” Maggie says and Alex can see tears gathering in her eyes, “Four years Alex. I spent four years flirting around and wasting time when I should have just told her.”

“You’re going to get a chance to tell her,” Alex says taking a step forward and taking her friend’s hand. “I promise.”

“Sheriff Danvers,” a voice says from behind Alex and she turns to see Agent Dox standing in the hallway. With a quick look to Maggie Alex steps out of the room.

“Everything ok?” Alex asks the young agent, keeping her voice low.

“Yes, I brought your sister-in-law and niece,” Brainy explains, “They’re in the family waiting area. I thought that would be the best place for them right now. There are a number of deputies in the waiting room.”

“They’re all waiting to hear how Heather is,” Alex says with a nod, “I’ll go talk to them. Can you let Kara know that Lena and Emma are here?”

“Absolutely,” Brainy nods then heads down the hallway. 

Before she heads out to the main waiting room Alex stops by the small, private family waiting room where Lena and Emma are.

“Aunt Lexie,” Emma says when Alex walks into the room. The girl slides off her mother’s lap and wraps her arms around her aunt’s legs. 

“Hey kiddo,” Alex says with a small smile. Alex looks to Lena and says, “Kara should be here soon.”

Lena nods and says, “Good.” She hesitates before asking, “You caught him?”

“We did,” Alex answers with a nod. “He’s in the psych room here because he was injured but yea, we have him.”

Lena seems to visibly let out a sigh of relief at that news. 

Before another word is said the door opens again, this time Kara walking through. 

Lena stands up as soon as she sees her wife and goes to her, wrapping her arms around Kara’s neck and pulling her close.

Kara’s arms instantly come around her waist, holding on to her firmly. 

“I have you love,” Kara whispers to her wife and she can feel some of then tension from the day slipping from her shoulders, as she holds her wife in her arms.

**

“How long has she been in there?” Kara asks some time later, when Alex comes back to the family room and sits.

“Almost two hours,” Alex sighs as she looks at her sister and her family. 

Kara and Lena are sitting together on the small couch in the room, Emma had dozed off close to an hour ago and was sleeping on Kara’s chest.

“He hasn’t said anything else?” Kara asks, making sure to keep her voice low so to not disturb her daughter.

“Just keeps saying that she’s safe,” Alex answers with a shake of her head. “We’ve searched his house, top to bottom and can’t find anything. His house doesn’t even look like he lives there.”

“I want to see him,” Lena speaks up from beside Kara, startling both her wife and Alex.

“No way,” Kara says the same time Alex shakes her head. “There’s no way I’m letting you in a room with him.”

“Not in the room,” Lena shakes her head, “you said he’s in the observation room right?”

“Right,” Alex offers, earning her a glare from her sister.

“Which means I can see him but he won’t be able to see me,” Lena reason. 

“She’s right,” Alex says with an apologetic look to her sister. “Plus there are three agents in there and I’ll be there too. She’d be completely safe.”

“No way,” Kara says again, this time causing Emma to stir slightly. Kara calmly runs a hand down the girls back until she settles again. She looks from her wife to her sister, “I don’t like the idea of this at all.”

“Me either,” Alex sighs, “but at this point we need something.”

A few minutes later Alex and Kara, their mother had come to the family room to wait with a still sleeping Emma, walk into the observation room. It had taken some convincing of Agent Henshaw to allow Lena into the observation room but eventually he had conceded.

“What did your mentor think about you bringing your little brother along?” they hear Sam asks through the glass. She’s now standing, leaning against the wall next to Darrell’s hospital bed. 

Lena steps into the room and looks through the glass. Her first reaction at seeing Darrell is to close her eyes, he looks so much like his brother that memories instantly flare to life. She shakes her head and reopens her eyes, watching as Darrell answers Sam’s question.

“He didn’t know,” Darrell says with just a touch of defiance in his voice. 

“So your mentor didn’t know,” Sam says with a nod, “How’d you mange that?”

“He wasn’t here anymore,” Darrell answers, “He’d shown me what I needed to know and left.”

“So, you decided, what the hell, I’ll bringing my little brother into this,” Sam says walking back across the room, stopping at the foot of Darrell’s bed. “He wasn’t messed up enough, you thought you could make him more of an outcast.”

“We were brothers,” Darrel sneers again, “What I did, I did for out brotherhood.”

“By making your brother into a murder, you were saving your brotherhood?” Sam ask skepticism heavy in her voice. “Sounds like a hell of a way to keep a family together.”

“We weren’t a family!” Darrell snaps, pulling at his restraints. “Our father hated us, blamed us for our mother’s death. It was just Nate and me, just us, our own little world.”

The words hit Lena and she feels lightheaded for a moment, a memory surfacing and she gasps.

_ “Where do you run off to all the time?” she had asked Nate during the summer after they had graduated high school. They were sitting on the couch in the living room of his father’s house, Lena having come over after trying to get ahold of Nate all day._

_ “Just out with Darrell,” Nate answers with a shrug. “We went up to the old hunting cabin that used to be our grandfather’s. It about ten miles off of Johnson’s road, up in the mountains.” A wicked smiles crosses Nate’s face and he adds, “It’s our own little world up there._

“Lena,” Kara’s voice breaks in to the memory and Lena realizes that her wife is holding her arm, supporting her slightly, “Love, are you alright?”

“The hunting cabin,” Lena says lightly, shaking her head. 

“What?” Alex asks sounding confused, “what hunting cabin?”

“Nate, he told me once, about a hunting cabin that used to belong to their grandfather,” Lena manages, pressing a hand to her temple. “He said, it was their own little world.”

There’s a moment when no one in the room says anything or moves as those words sink in.

“That’s where he’s got her,” Alex says stepping from the room. 

Henshaw is right behind her and takes her arm,” Hang on Sheriff.”

“Hang on?” Alex asks in disbelief, “You’re joking right?”

“No,” Henshaw says with a shake of his head and Alex sees Olsen step out of the room, he opens the door to the room Darrell is in and says something to Sam.

“Think about it,” Henshaw says, “you don’t think he’d leave her out there without some protection. We need to be careful.”

“He’s right,” Sam says as she steps out of the room. The sound of Darrell yelling after her ends abruptly when the door is closed. “We do this carefully and we get your friend back.”

“Alright,” Alex says with a nod, “What do we need to do?”

“Do you know how to get to this cabin?” Henshaw asks and Alex nods, Lena having filled them in. 

“It’ll be a hike,” Alex advises.

“I’m sure we’re up for it,” Henshaw offers with a grin. “Alright, Olsen and I will take two deputies with us. You two,” Henshaw gestures between Alex and Sam, “Take Agent Danvers with you and see if you can come at the cabin from a different angle. Keep your radios on,” he adds sternly, “I want everyone checking in.”

“You got it,” Sam says with a nod. 

“Kara,” Alex says, leaning back into the observation room, “looks like we’re going for a hike in the woods.”

“Just like old times,” Kara says with a smile. She then turns back to her wife, wrapping her arms around her tightly, “Go be with Emma until we get back.”

“Please be careful my love,” Lena says with tears of worry in her eyes.

“Promise,” Kara says and places a soft kiss on Lena’s lips before she heads out of the room. 

“You ready for this?” Kara asks Alex a few minutes later as she slides into the back seat of the SUV. 

“Ready for this to be over,” Alex answers from the front passenger seat. 

“I mean, we don’t know what we’re going to find out here,” Kara offers with a glance at Sam, who is behind the wheel.

“I know,” Alex says grimly. 


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The group head into the woods looking for Lucy and things begin to come to an end.

The drive to Johnson’s road wasn’t long, only fifteen minutes from the hospital, but it felt like it took three times longer as Alex sits in the passenger seat of the FBI vehicle Sam was driving. 

“Is there another way we can get up to this cabin?” Sam asks after they had been driving a few minutes.

“Um, I don’t know,” Alex answers honestly. “I know there are three trails that all lead to the top of the mountain, but I don’t know if the cabin is on any of them.”

“It has to be close to one of them,” Kara reasons from the back seat, “He had to be able to get a full grown woman up to it. Conscious or not, that’s not easy to do if you’re hiking.”

Alex shakes her head, trying to remember something, anything, that would give them some idea as to where this cabin is. All Lena had known was that the cabin was ten miles off the road, she didn’t know in what direction, which left a lot of open area to search.

_ “Have you ever hiked out past the old trail?” Steve asked as he sat down at the table next to Alex. _

_ “We’re supposed to working on this history project,” Alex complains not looking up from her history homework spread out on the table in front of her._

_ “We will,” Steve says with a nod, “but have you ever hiked out past the old trail?”_

_ “No,” Alex says with a sigh, setting her pen down, “Why?”_

_ “I was out that way this morning,” Steve answers. _

_ “How early do you get up?” Alex says with a shake of her head._

_ Steve just smiles at her, “Better get used to it pal. The Army’s going to be getting us up early all the time.”_

_ “True,” Alex chuckles. “So what did you find out past the old trail?”_

_ Steve’s face lights up and he answers, “An old cabin.”_

_ Alex laughs and shoves his shoulder playfully, “You got this excited over some old cabin in the woods?”_

_ “Yea,” Steve nods, “come on Alex, it could be an adventure.”_

_ “The last adventure I followed you in to we ended up enlisting,” Alex says with a chuckle. After a moment though her curiosity gets the better of her and, with a sigh, she asks, “Where exactly is this cabin?”_

_ Steve’s face lights up again, “Six miles straight north of the end of Johnson’s road.”_

“Six miles north,” Alex mumbles, mostly to herself, though it does not go unnoticed by the two agents in the car.

“Alex?” her sister asks from the backseat, “What’d you say?” It hadn’t escaped Kara’s notice that her sister had been acting a bot off ever since she and Sam had arrived at the hospital, the faraway voice she heard now concerned her even more.

“Six miles due north of the end of Johnson’s road,” Alex says louder this time, earning her a quick glance and nod from Sam.

“How do you know?” Kara asks as she reaches for her radio to let Henshaw know.

“I just remembered something,” Alex says with a shake of her head and she reaches up to rub her temples, “something Steve said about a cabin up here.”

“Steve,” Kara repeats the name, watching her sister’s profile from the front seat. She knows that Alex hasn’t talked about Steve in years, at least not to her or her mother. 

“Your friend growing up?” Sam asks with another quick concerned glance at Alex, who nods, surprising Kara.

“He used to go for hikes all the time,” Alex adds, “he told me he found one up here. We never got a chance to hike up here together. It was our senior year and we had some much to get done before we graduated. We just never made it up here together.”

“It’s alright,” Sam offers softly, “We’ll find it now.”

Kara watches the interaction between her sister and Sam curiously for a moment before smiles slightly and reaching up, putting a hand on her sister’s shoulder.

“We’ll make this right,” Kara promises her sister and gives her shoulder a small squeeze.

What feels like an hour later, but in reality was less than ten minutes, Sam brings the SUV to a stop. The road that had been in front of them had gone from paved to dirt and not even that path disappeared into the darkness of the forest. 

“Looks like we’re walking from here,” Sam says looking at Alex. “This right?”

“Yep,” Alex says, taking her seat belt off, “You should let Henshaw know we’re here. Radios don’t always work up here, at least not as well.”

“I got it,” Kara offers from the backseat as she radios their location in to Henshaw.

Alex and Sam climb out of the SUV, Alex grabbing her flashlight off her belt and flicking it on, lighting up the area to the right of the SUV.

“It’ll be six miles this way,” Alex says as Sam rounds the front of the SUV, pulling her own light from her pocket and turning it on.

“You sure?” Sam asks a bit doubtful.

“That’s north,” Alex offers with a nod and when Sam still looks doubtful she adds, “Trust me.”

Sam hesitates a fraction of a second before she nods to the Sheriff. 

“Alex can pretty much sniff out north,” Kara adds as she come to stand beside the pair, “Upside to spending half your life crawling around the mountains.”

A few minutes later, as they walk through the dark forest, Sam steps up to Kara and says in a low voice, “I think congratulations are in order.”

“For what?” Kara asks looking at the other agent.

“Henshaw wouldn’t have had you come with if he didn’t already consider you part of the team,” Sam says with a small smile.

“Really?” Kara asks, trying to keep her smile in check.

Sam nods and adds, “I talked to him at the hospital. If it’s still something you want, after all this, than we’ll put the paperwork in as soon as we get back to Washington.”

Kara nods but hesitates before she answers, “Can I have some time to think about it? I want to talk about it with Lena before I make a decision for sure.”

“Absolutely,” Sam nods knowingly, “it’s a big decision and not one to make lightly.”

“I appreciate it,” Kara nods again. They continue to walk in silence for a while before Sam realizes that she doesn’t see Alex anymore.

“Where’s Alex?” Sam asks looking around them. The Sheriff’s flashlight is no longer visible either.

“I don’t know,” Kara admits. She knows they’ve been walking long enough that the cabin shouldn’t be too far ahead but still should have been a few more minutes’ walk.

“Shit,” Sam hisses as she continues to look around, Alex had been in front of them, leading them through the dark and she swears she had only taken her eyes off Alex for a second.

“Something wrong?” Alex says from the darkness, causing both her sister and Sam to jump. 

“Jesus, Alex,” Kara sighs, “You scared the shit out of us. Why are you lurking around in the dark?”

Even through the dark Sam can make out the smile on Alex’s face. 

“I went ahead, made sure we were still on the right path,” Alex answers switching her flashlight back on, “and we are. The cabin is closer than we thought.”

“Good,” Sam nods as her heart rate slows back to normal, “I tried reaching Henshaw a few minutes ago but I don’t think it went through.”

“I didn’t see anyone else,” Alex answers. They walk a bit further, Alex leading them to an area that well concealed but has a clean view of the cabin. There were no lights on inside and no movement that any of them could see.

“Remember what Henshaw said,” Sam cautions them, “we don’t know what kind of set up he has in there or what we’re walking in to.” She takes a moment to look at Alex who simply nods her understanding of what Sam is trying to warn her of. 

_We have no idea what he’s done to Lucy_, Alex thinks to herself, _so we can’t be sure what we’re going to see_.

Pulling her revolver from its holster Alex starts forward, Sam and Kara right behind her.

They reach the small porch and Alex takes a moment to glance through the front window, seeing nothing but darkness she takes a steadying breath.

Alex looks to Sam, who has taken up a position on the opposite side of the door from her, and Kara, standing behind her, both with weapons drawn.

With a small nod Alex reaches out and turns the doorknob, not surprised to find that it is locked. They all jump when the sudden sound of dog barking comes from inside the cabin.

_Lena was right about the dog_, Sam thinks with a nod to herself. She can feel Kara moving behind her and turns to see that she’s replaced her weapon in it’s holster, pulling another weapon from her coat pocket, which Sam cannot make out in the dark.

Alex takes a step back from the door and, setting her shoulders, kicked the door in. The silent night is shattered by the sound of splintering wood as the door swings in. Alex takes a quick step back to the side as a large, black dog comes barreling out of the cabin, looking for however had just disturbed his home.

“Woah there boy,” Kara says soothingly to the dog, who whips his head around at the sound of her voice.

The dog’s response is to growl and take a leap towards Kara and Sam, the former of which was quick to react and fires her weapon at the dog. The dog doesn’t drop immediately and for a second Alex thinks her sister must have missed the dog, but the dog does fall short of his target, takes a few staggered steps before falling over.

Once Alex is sure the dog isn’t getting back up she proceeds into the house, scanning left as Sam follows her, scanning right. They quickly clear the front room, a couch, desk, chair and cot shoved into the corner are all they find.

Moving to the first door, Alex checks and finds that the door is not locked. With another quick glance to Sam she turns the doorknob and pushes the door open. 

Alex wasn’t sure what she had expected to find but her eyes take a moment to fully realize everything she’s looking at.

The room isn’t large, but set in the middle is an exam table, much like the ones in Wally’s office beneath the County Building, and hanging from the ceiling is a large light, something that would look better suited for an operating room than in an old rundown hunting cabin. 

Lining all the walls are bladed tools, a variety of which Alex had never even known existed and she feels her throat tighten at the sight.

Laying on the exam table, still wearing the same clothes she had on when she and Maggie had stopped by the station that afternoon, is Lucy. She’s not moving and for a second Alex fears the worse. 

Sam moves quickly to check Lucy, reaching for her wrist, which has been bound to the table. The restraints are quickly removed and Sam lays two fingers against the skin of Lucy’s neck.

“She’s alive,” Sam announces, looking at Alex with a smile, “She’s alive,” she repeats. 

“Lucy,” Alex says, looking down at the brunette laying on the table, “Can you hear me?”

A long moment passes before Lucy’s eyes start to flutter open. A look of confusion crosses her face, followed quickly by recognition and fear. 

“Easy Lucy,” Alex says in a low voice, “It’s Alex. You’re safe.”

Lucy looks around, still confused but slowly starts to sit up.

“Easy,” Sam warns, placing a hand on Lucy’s back. “You were probably sedated.”

“He gave me a shot of something,” Lucy answers slowly, “in the truck and then something else when we got here.” She rubs absently at the marks on her wrist from where the restraints had been just moments before, “Where is he?” she asks, looking to Alex.

“At the hospital,” Alex tells her, “in custody and being watched by three Deputies.”

That news seems to ease Lucy’s mind slightly and she nods slowly, still looking around.

“She’s probably going to be out of it for a while,” Kara says from the doorway, “looks like he was using some pretty potent stuff.”

“How do you know?” Sam asks.

“You’re going to want to see the other room,” is Kara’s answer and her face looks grim.

Sam looks back at Alex, who gives her a nod, and steps out of the room, following Kara.

“Alex,” Lucy says and her eyes are suddenly full of tears, “he shot Maggie.”

“I know,” Alex lays a comforting hand on Lucy’s arm as the bartender swings her legs off the side of the table.

“He, I,” Lucy tries to speak but can’t seem to find the words as the tears start to stream down her face and it occurs to Alex that Lucy must have thought that Maggie was dead.

“Lucy,” Alex says carefully guiding her out of the room on onto the couch in the front room, “Lucy, listen to me. Maggie’s alive.”

“I saw him shot her,” Lucy says numbly.

“He did,” Alex confirms with a nod, “but the bullet just grazed her. She needed a few stitches but she’s ok. She’s at the hospital right now, complaining of course,” Alex adds a little lightheartedly. 

“She’s ok?” Lucy asks sounding a little more sure of her words.

“She is,” Alex nods with a smile, “and so are you. This is over.”

“Arias. Danvers,” Alex hears Henshaw’s voice call from the doorway of the cabin. 

“We’re in here,” Sam’s voice reaches out from the back room and in a moment Henshaw, Olsen and a deputy come into sight.

“We need an ambulance,” Alex says to them, “she’s ok but she was drugged pretty good.”

“On it,” her deputy says, stepping quickly out of the cabin to try and find reception. 

_Better off_, Alex thinks, _I’d prefer they not have to see too much of this_.

“Sir,” Kara says, appearing from the back of the cabin, “you’re going to want to take a look at this.”

“Alright,” Henshaw says as he and Olsen both holster their weapons, “What happened with the dog?”

“It was his security system,” Kara answers with a sigh, “He’s just unconscious.”

“Unconscious?” Alex asks giving her sister a quizzical look.

Kara smiles, pulling from her jacket pocket a smaller looking weapon with a strange end, “When we profiled that he’d have a dog for this kind of thing I went over to the animal clinic in town. The doc there had a tranquilizer gun he let me borrow.”

Henshaw laughs, slapping Kara on the shoulder, “Good thinking Agent Danvers.”

“Thank you sir,” Kara says, beaming and Alex can’t help but smile at her sister.

“Good shooting Kara Hood,” Alex says earning her an eye roll from her sister.

A few minutes later the deputy returns to let Alex know that an ambulance had been dispatched but they would need to mee it at the main road. 

“I’m going to have to talk to Maggie about her co-workers being afraid to go for a walk in the woods,” Alex jokes with Lucy, who gives her a weak smile in return. 

“I’m surprised she didn’t storm the cabin herself,” Lucy offers and Alex nods her head.

“She would have if I hadn’t stuck my mother on her,” Alex said, “otherwise she’d be here.”

Alex helps get Lucy to her feet, then after checking that she doesn’t need her, allows her deputy to escort Lucy down to meet the ambulance.

Taking a deep breath, Alex turns back to the cabin and heads to the back room, where the agents have all gathered.

Alex stands in the doorway of the second room of the cabin. She had considered going with Lucy to the hospital but knew that Maggie was there, and in reality, that was the only person Lucy needed right now.

Alex had watched the same detective and crime solving shows that most people do throughout their lives and had seen what was often times described as the ‘killer’s lair’ but she hadn’t been expecting what Kara had found in the second, smaller room. 

Covering almost every inch of the walls were pictures and drawings. The pictures were of at least two dozen young women, all of which had been strapped down to a table similar to the one in the other room. The women ranged in looks from the brunettes that had clearly been Darrell’s victims, to blondes and even a few red heads, none of those women looked like any of those from the files still sitting in the conference room back at the station. 

The room was empty of furniture, with the exception of a desk that sat pushed into the back corner. Covering the desk, and stacked on the floor beside it, were a number of journals. 

Sam was in the process of looking through one that sat open on the desk. She was leaning over the desk, slowing thumbing through the pages with her gloves on, lines crossing her forehead.

“What is all this?” Alex finally asks after a moment of taking in the scene.

Sam looks up from the journal, “Looks like Darrell has been keeping track of everything he’s been doing since he met this ‘mentor’ of his. Conversations, instructions he was given on how to mark his victim, even why he chose the ones he did.”

“You mean he kept records of all this,” Alex gestures around the room, “for twelve years?”

“I haven’t even begun to scratch the surface here,” Sam says with a sad shake of her head, “but it looks like it. I haven’t seen anything that tells us who these other women are though. It’s going to take a lot of work to get through all this.”

“That’s why everything is getting boxed up and taken back to Washington with us,” Henshaw says as he steps into the room. Looking around he takes in all the faces starting back at him.

“What about this ‘mentor’ Darrell keeps talking about?” Alex asks.

“As of right now we don’t even know if this ‘mentor’ is even real or just something his twisted brain came up with,” Henshaw says with a sigh, “and unfortunately without any other evidence, there just isn’t much we can do right now.”

“So that’s it?” Alex asks, feeling her temper rise. Something that Sam clearly recognizes as well as she takes a step closer to Alex.

“For right now,” Henshaw nods his head, “I’m sorry Sheriff, I know it’s not the answer you were hoping for. We’ll keep looking into this until we’ve exhausted the evidence.”

“We stopped Darrell,” Sam offers, “and we got Lucy back.”

“Doesn’t help the other victims though,” Alex says with a huff, “or their families.”

“I’m sorry Sheriff,” Henshaw offers, “You’ve got one hell of a mind for this kind of thing,” he adds before he turns and heads for the door, “I see where your sister gets it from.” Henshaw throws a look at Kara who nods with a smile. 

“I’m going to go grab some stuff from the truck so we can get started,” Kara offers after a moment and she and Olsen both head out of the room

“That’s a pretty big compliment from him,” Sam offers when Alex turns back around to face her. 

“I guess I’ll thank him later,” Alex offers with half a smile. Sam is surprised when she feels a pang of sadness at the attempted smile. She’d come to admire the woman standing in front of her and hadn’t realized how much she’d come to like the smile the other woman wore, her real smile. Not the one she wore when she was talking to people around town, or the one she’d offered earlier at the hospital when she had been trying to convince everyone, including herself Sam thinks, that she was ok.

No, the smile Sam realized she missed in that moment, was the smile Alex wore when she talked about her first car, or the one when she was spending time playing with her niece, even the one she’d shared with Sam just a few hours ago in her office, while they had talked about growing up and Sam’s children.

“I’ve got two Deputies heading out to give you guys a hand photographing everything and packing it all up,” Alex says into Sam’s drifting thoughts.

“Um, that’s great,” Sam offers trying to not sound like she had just been daydreaming about the Sheriff’s smile. 

“I want to get back to the hospital soon,” Alex continues, if she’d noticed anything strange about Sam’s voice she’d chosen to ignore it, “want to check in on Martinez again.”

“I heard she was doing alright,” Sam offers.

“Yea, made it out of surgery good,” Alex nods with a sigh, “They think she’ll be alright. Tough kid.”

“She has a good example in you,” Sam says and feels her face flush slightly.

“I don’t know about that,” Alex says in a low voice. “I guess you’ll all be leaving pretty soon,” Alex says by way of changing the subject.

Sam nods, “Yea. Once we get back I’ll starting having Brainy run the pictures of the other victims through the system, see if we can’t get some IDs. We’ll be working this one for a while yet.”

“I’m glad to know you’re still going to be working on it,” Alex says with a sigh, “I hate the idea of so many people not knowing what happened to their loved ones.” There’s a bit of pain in the Sheriff’s voice and Sam knows she’s thinking of her brother. 

“I’ll do everything I can,” Sam assures her.

**

A little while later, after Olsen had taken over the evidence collection part of the detail, Alex and Sam found themselves back at the hospital, this time though there was a lighter feeling to the air. Both Maggie and Lucy were going to be fine, the former with a few stitches and bruises and the latter sporting a few bruises of her own, but otherwise fine.

“Glad to see that thick skull of yours finally paid off,” Alex jokes as she and Sam walk into Maggie’s hospital room. Unlike the last time, Maggie was not alone. It had taken some convincing, and with the help of Alex’s mother, after being treated for anything pressing, Lucy had been allowed to stay in Maggie’s room. Lucy was currently laying next to Maggie, who had her arms around Lucy, holding her close.

“Ass,” Maggie says as she runs her fingers through Lucy’s hair, “but thank you.”

“Hey, ride or die, right?” Alex says with a grin quoting a phrase the two had been using since their first deployment together. 

“Right,” Maggie says with a wide smile.

“You two are never going to change are you?” Lucy asks with a small chuckle.

“Probably not,” Alex says with a shrug.

“Not likely,” Maggie says at the same time. 

“Wow,” Sam says with a shake of her head and a smile.

They talk a few more minutes before Alex and Sam step back out into the hallway, closing the door behind them. 

A long moment of silence passes between them before Alex says, “At least you’ll get to be home before Halloween.” It was a lame attempt at a conversation starter but Alex had never been very good at it. 

“Yea,” Sam offers a nod and smile, “I’m excited to take the kids trick or treating. Michael wasn’t really old enough to go last year so he stayed home with my mother.”

“What are they dressing up as?” Alex asks.

“Ruby is going as Winnie the Pooh, which she is currently obsessed with, and Michael is going as a very tiny Captain America,” Sam answers with that smile she always wears when she’s talking about her kids. It was something that Alex had noticed from that first night, when they had talked in the conference room and Alex had found out about Sam’s children.

“I’m sure they’re going to be adorable,” Alex offers with a smile and a nod. 

“I’ll send you pictures,” Sam offers then adds, “if you’d like.”

“That’d be great. I know you already have my number,” Alex says feeling her face flush just slightly. 

“I do,” Sam nods, feeling shyer than she could remember feeling in a very long time. 

“There you are,” Alex hears her mother’s voice and unconsciously takes a step back from Sam.

“Hi mom,” Alex says as her mother gets closer and wraps Alex in a tight hug. 

“I’m glad you’re back,” Eliza says, pulling her daughter to arms length and giving her a once over. “Are you alright?”

“Fine mom,” Alex says and when her mother looks at her doubtful she adds, “I promise. It’s been a really long week.”

“That it has,” Eliza says, keeping her eyes on her first born for another moment before, apparently satisfied that her daughter is telling the truth, she turns to Sam with smile. “I know your team will want to head back as soon as possible but I’d like to make lunch for everyone tomorrow. I think we could all use a good, homecooked meal.”

Alex starts to objects but is stopped by Sam’s smile, “I think that would be a wonderful idea. I’ll call Agent Henshaw but I’m sure he’ll agree.”

“Wonderful,” Eliza smiles, “I’m sure Alex won’t mind if we use her house for the meal,” Eliza asks with a smile at her daughter.

“Of course not,” Alex says with a nod.

“Guess I’ll see you tomorrow,” Sam offers with a shy smile to Alex as she walks away down the hallway.

Alex watches her go for a moment before looking back at her mother, who is giving her a curious look.

“What?” Alex asks, a little defensively. 

“Nothing honey,” is Eliza’s answer. “You should probably get home and get some sleep. Everything here is fine for tonight and your sister already took her family back to the house.”

“This has been so hard on them,” Alex says in a low voice.

“It’s been hard on all of you,” Eliza says, offering a kind smile to her daughter, “Now, get home and rest. I’ll be over in the morning.”

“Alright mom,” Alex says and gives her mother a quick kiss on the cheek before she too heads out of the hospital for the last time that night. 

Less than twenty minutes later Alex walks through the front door of her house and is greeted instantly by Scout, who comes trotting down the stairs.

“What were you doing up there you big goof?” Alex asks, reaching down and petting the dog as he stands in front of her. 

The pooch doesn’t answer and Alex hangs her coat on the hook by the door, kicking her boots off in the process. She quietly makes her way up the stairs, not knowing who is still awake or not and is surprised to see the door to her sister’s room open, a soft light coming from the room.

She stops in the doorway and smiles at what she sees there.

Kara is laying with her head on her wife’s shoulder, arm draped lazily across Lena’s waist, her hand resting on Emma’s arm. Emma, laying on Lena’s opposite side, is also curled against her mother, and both are sound asleep. Kara’s hair has been taken out of it’s customary braid and Lena is currently running her fingers through the blonde locks.

Lena hears Alex approach and looks up at her with a smile. 

“Is she ok?” Alex asks quietly, looking at her sleeping sister.

“She is,” Lena nods, looking down at her wife, “she’s just exhausted.”

“It’s not exactly been a relaxing vacation,” Alex offers with a sigh. She watches her sister-in-law a moment before she asks, “Are you doing alright?”

Lena nods looking from the sleeping Kara to Alex with a smile, “Not all days are good,” she admits, “and this has certainly been a rough trip but, I’ve got my girls, I’m good.”

Alex smiles, “I don’t think I ever thanked you.”

“For what?” Lena asks confused.

“Taking such good care of her,” Alex answers gesturing to her sister, “when I couldn’t. I don’t have to worry about her as much as I used to, not since she found you.”

Lena chuckles softly, “I think we found each other at exactly the right time.”

“Timing is everything,” Alex agrees with a small smile. 

“It is,” Lena agrees with a nod. “Sometimes though, life likes to surprise us by putting someone on our path we never saw coming. That’s one of the greatest things about life, you don’t always know what you want until it’s standing in front of you.”

“Are all Celtics so smart?” Alex asks with a wide smile to which her sister-in-law simply nods.

“She told me she got the offer tonight to be on the BAU team,” Lena says and Alex nods, not surprised by that news

“She’s the reason we were able to make the connection to Darrell,” Alex says nodding, “she’s the one that solved this case.”

“She said she asked for time to think about it,” Lena says, that does surprise Alex but she realizes why quickly.

“She’s worried about the toll it’ll take on you,” Alex offers looking at the little family before her, “on all of you.”

“I know she is,” Lena nods looking at her wife lovingly, “but I told her she should take the job. She’s good at it and if she can help others, then she should.”

“You’re a good person Lena,” Alex offers with a smile, “my sister is lucky you put up with her.”

“It’s not like that,” Lena says with a smile, “My life was a mess when I met Kara, she saved me.”

Alex nods and says, “I think you saved each other.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next to last chapter guys!! Only one more to go. Hope you guys are enjoying it!!


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With Darrell in custody and everyone safe and accounted for the BAU makes one last stop before they head out of town and everyone enjoys a few moments of peace together.

Alex wasn’t sure what time it was when she opened her eyes but sunlight was streaming through her bedroom window and the light sound of voices from downstairs told her that everyone else was already awake. 

She laid there and listened for a few minutes, just able to make out the sounds of her mother and sister-in-law’s voices coming from, what she guessed was the kitchen. Their voices were light and Alex could hear them laughing lightly together. 

Laying there she thinks about the two incredible women currently working together in her kitchen. Lena, who had been through hell and back more times than Alex thought possible for one person to go through and still remain sane, was a pillar of strength. Sure she had her moments when everything caught up with her but in those moments she had Kara. 

Kara, her little sister who wasn’t so little anymore, had turned out to be an inspiration for Alex. She’d watched her sister struggle their entire lives, fighting against the expectations of this town, until she’d finally broken free and was now living the life she had always hoped for. Kara was a fighter and catching moments like last night, when she let her guard down and leaned on her wife, were far and few between.

With Lena, Kara was different, stronger in a way Alex hadn’t thought possible.

Then there was her mother. Alex sighs heavily when she thinks about her mother. The woman that had lost her son and her husband in less than a year and who had remained strong. Looking back now Alex realized that their mother had done it for them, for her girls, to take the darkness that had fallen on their family and find the light.

The world was cruel and there were times that Alex thought the universe had it out for good people, making them suffer more. It was so easy to let the evil things the world does to you turn you bitter, cold, hateful even. It took very little effort to let the world turn you into someone that just didn’t care anymore, that could walk past a drowning man and not even spare him a glance. 

It took strength to take that pain and anger and to turn it into something positive. To be the person that looked at the world and could still see the good in it, to still want to help others, despite the pain it may cause yourself. 

Alex’s mind wonders to Sam then, and the little she knew about the agent. While Alex couldn’t fathom the idea of walking away from someone like Sam, she knew that’s exactly what had happened. Her husband had walked away, leaving her with two children and no answers. She could have been bitter, angry and untrusting but instead she’d chosen to look at it in the best way possible. She hadn’t felt sorry for herself or lashed out. She had her children, she was happy. 

Laying there now, Alex can’t help but wonder if she could possibly be as brave as these amazing women she had the privilege of knowing. Sure, she’d gone to war and been injured but was the end of her brave actions. She’s been so sure that this was where her life was supposed to be, that this was the person the world had decided she should be, that she’d never thought to question it. She hadn’t been brave, she’d stayed here, hidden here, thinking that it was the best she could do.

She’d given up and hadn’t realized it, not until the last few days anyway. Alex wasn’t sure what it had been that had made her realize it either. It could have been the case, how she’d missed something this big right in front of her. It could have been watching her sister blossom into one hell of an agent. It could have been seeing Lena relive more than one of the hells in her life and still deciding to help. Something had made Alex open her eyes and realize that she needed to do something, that hiding here was no longer an option she was willing to tolerate from herself.

There was a noise from the hallway and her bedroom door creaks open just slightly. 

“Aunt Lexie,” Emma’s voice comes from the door causing Alex to smile instantly, “are you awake?”

“You bet I am short round,” Alex says looking to the door which is then pushed the rest of the way open as the bouncing toddler rushes into the room, all smiles, and wiggles her way up onto the bed.

“Grandma said it times to get up,” Emma says as she flops herself down next to Alex, who pushes herself into a sitting position, resting against the headboard.

“Did she now?” Alex asks still smiling at her niece.

Emma nods and says, “Grandma and Mommy are making lunch for everyone,” Emma say spread her arms out in front of her to emphasize how many people were coming for lunch.

“That’s a lot of people,” Alex chuckles as she tries to tame some of the girl’s dark hair. “Where’s your Momma?”

“She’s in the back yard,” Emma explains, “Mommy said she needed to practice being Kara Hood.”

Alex chuckles but nods, _Outback practicing with her bow again_. Alex knew her sister well enough to know that meant something was on her mind. Shooting had always been a way for Kara to center herself and clear her thoughts. 

“Alright shortie,” Alex says, “Go tell your grandma I’ll be downstairs in a few minutes.”

“Aunt Lexie,” Emma says looking up at her aunt, “Can you and Scout come live with us?”

Alex finds herself a bit dumbfounded by the child’s answer and can’t seem to find her words.

“I don’t like it that you’re so far away,” Emma continues with a sigh that sounds so much like Kara it makes Alex chuckle. “We could play everyday if you lived with us.”

“Yea, we could,” Alex agrees with a nod feeling a lump form in her throat. “Head on downstairs now, I’ll be there soon.”

Emma throws her arms around Alex’s neck for a tight hug before she bounces off the bed and disappears through the door again.

Alex shakes her head before sighing heavily and heading for the shower. 

**

Kara places another arrow against the bow and, with a steady breath, pulls the bow string tight. With a slow exhale, she releases the arrow and watches as it sails to the target, landing in the center, next to the four others she’d already placed there.

“It still freaks me out how you do that,” her sister’s voice comes from behind her. 

Kara chuckles as she pulls another arrow out of the quiver she’d propped against the old tree stump. 

“Lena told me you were out here,” Alex continues as Kara pulls off another shot, “I figured it had something to do with the offer you got to join the team.”

That at least gets her sister to turn around and face her with a curious look before saying, “Lena tell you?”

“She mentioned it last night, after I got home,” Alex shrugs, “You were asleep.”

Kara nods her head, “Yea, Agent Henshaw and I talked after we got back to the station last night and I’d talked to Agent Arias before that. They said that they’d love to have me be part of their team.”

“And you told them you needed to think about it,” Alex finishes when Kara doesn’t.

Her sister nods and kicks at the frozen ground under her feet. 

“I know you’re worried about Lena,” Alex starts but stops when her sister looks at her.

“The first real case like this I work and it literally comes back to my family,” Kara says, worry lines across her forehead, “How can I even consider taking a job that could put them in danger?”

“You’re right,” Alex says with a nod that surprises her sister, “It’s a dangerous job. There are some seriously messed up people out there and they do some insane shit to other people. Lena has already come face to face with that more than once in her life.”

“This is a hell of a pep talk,” Kara mutters, looking down again.

“What did Lena have to say about the job?” Alex asks.

“That it’s something I’ve been working towards for years and that I shouldn’t turn it down,” Kara answers. 

“She’s right,” Alex nods again, “You’re damn good at this job Kara, hell you make it look easy.” Kara continues to look at the ground so Alex continues, “Think about it this way. You take this job, you spend the rest of your career stopping people like Darrell and his brother. It won’t always be easy, but you have the chance to make the world just a little bit safer for Emma. Besides,” Alex adds with a shrug, “what are the odds that another one of your cases are going to be connected to us?”

“Probably one in a million,” Kara answers with a shrug. She finally looks back at Alex and asks, “You really think I can do this?”

Alex smiles, taking the few steps that separate the sisters and throwing her arm around her sister’s shoulders, “Kara Hood, I think you can do anything. You’re a regular superhero.”

Kara laughs at that and says, “Does that make you my side kick?”

“Don’t push your luck brat,” Alex asks as they start to make their way back towards the house. 

“You know, I think this is the first time you’ve been in normal clothes since we got here,” Kara says looking at her sister as they walk. After her shower Alex had thrown on a pair on black jeans and a maroon button down that she’d left untucked. 

“Is not,” Alex smiles, “I wore jeans on Saturday, at least for a little while.”

Kara snorts a laugh, “Four hours in normal clothes, must be a record.”

“Smartass,” Alex says giving her sister’s shoulder a playful shove as they round the house. As they reach the drive way, two black SUV’s pull up in front of the house. 

“Agent Henshaw told me that they’re going to make sure Nate is charged with the murders he did,” Alex says as she and Kara watch the doors to the SUVs open, “He and Darrell will never see the world outside of prison again.”

“The only thing about all this that makes me feel better,” Kara says with a nod.

“Must be our guests,” Alex sighs as the agents exit their vehicle her eyes land on Sam and she smiles. 

“Feds growing on you sis?” Kara teases from beside her, earning her a glare, which causes her to laugh again. “Thought so.”

“I take back all the nice things I said about you,” Alex mumbles to her sister who continues to smile smugly. 

“We’re a bit early,” Agent Henshaw announces as he leads his team up the driveway.

“Not at all,” Alex smiles at the older man, offering her hand to him. “I’m just glad you were able to stick around for an extra day.”

“It was an unexpected surprise,” Henshaw agrees shaking Alex’s hand firmly, “Your town has been more welcoming than most places we visit.”

“Now that’s scary,” Alex smiles as she leads the small group inside.

A few minutes later Alex stands in the archway leading from the kitchen to the living room, watching the roomful of people laughing as Olsen entertains them with a story from his time with the NYPD.

“This old house hasn’t had this much laughter in a long time,” Eliza says from beside Alex, who nods her agreement.

“It’s nice, just wish it could have been under better circumstances,” Alex says looking to her mother. 

“There is that,” Eliza agrees, “but still, I think that’s what’s been missing here. The laughter.”

Alex doesn’t say anything to that and Eliza watches her oldest child for a moment before she continues, “You know that you don’t have to stay here for me.”

Startled Alex looks at her mother, mouth open but no words finding their way out.

“I’m just saying,” Eliza shrugs, “This place used to feel like home, now it just feels like a memory. Besides, Lena and Emma have been trying to convince me to move to Virginia and I’m not against the idea of being closer to my grandbaby.”

“Mom,” Alex starts but stops when her mother turns and smiles at her.

“I just want you to be happy sweetheart,” Eliza says before disappearing back into the kitchen. 

Before Alex even has a chance to let her mother’s words sink in fully there a knock on the front door and Alex shakes her head as she walks the short distance to the door and opens it.

Standing on her doorstep, jawline bruised and with her head sporting a fresh, white bandage, is Maggie, Lucy on her arm.

Without thinking Alex steps forward and pulls her friend into a tight hug.

“You scared the hell out me yesterday,” Alex says to her as she steps back to arm’s length before she pulls Lucy into a hug as well, “you both did.”

“Scared me too,” Maggie admits with a nod, “I thought our days like that were over.”

“They are now,” Alex says, looking at her friends before her, “Come on in. All the agents are here,” Alex throws a grin at Maggie and says, “Maybe you can even make nice with Agent Olsen before they leave.” Maggie rolls her eyes in response, earning a smile from Lucy.

When they walk into the living room they are meant with cheers of welcome and Kara hugs Lucy, playfully shoving Maggie’s shoulder. 

“Glad you’re alright squid,” Kara says with a big smile, “now we can have a rematch.”

**

Two hours later Alex hangs up the phone that sits on the corner of the desk in her office. She’d called to check on Deputy Martinez, who was doing better and was expected to make a full recovery and had just relaxed into her chair when there was a knock on the door.

“Yea, come in,” she calls standing up. She rounding the desk when Sam walks into the office, closing the door behind her.

“Your mother told me you’d probably be in here,” Sam says with a smile. “She also told me to tell you to stop being antisocial.”

“Of course she did,” Alex says, matching Sam’s smile, as she leans against the front of her desk, “and I wasn’t being antisocial. I was checking on Deputy Martinez.”

“I’m glad that everyone is going to be alright,” Sam says, stopping in front within arm’s reach of Alex, “Not all cases end this nicely.”

“Hard to imagine this as ending nicely,” Alex sighs, “but you’re right. It could have been a lot worse. I wanted to thank you.”

“I thought that’s what lunch was for,” Sam offers.

“Yea,” Alex chuckles a bit shyly, “that’s a thank you for the team and the case. I wanted to thank you, personally.”

“Me? Sam asks honestly surprised.

“For what happened yesterday at the hospital,” Alex explains, “I’ve had problems with stuff from the war ever since I got home, but it’s never been that bad before.”

“You don’t have to thank me for that,” Sam says, taking half a step forward, “and I meant what I said yesterday too. You don’t owe this town anything.”

Alex nods slowly, “I know that now, at least I think I’m starting to understand that. Me staying here,” Alex stops shaking her head at herself, “I’ve been afraid that, if I leave, I’ll be leaving my family, my home. I’m tired of being afraid.”

Something in Alex’s voice draws Sam closer and before she even fully realizes it she’s closed the gap between the two of them, her hand gently landing on Alex’s cheek. Without a thought Sam leans forward, placing her lips against Alex’s. 

If the Sheriff was surprised she doesn’t show it, one hand finding Sam’s waist and the other coming up cup Sam’s face, thumb lightly brushing over her cheek, as the kiss deepens. 

Sam can’t remember the last time she’s been kissed like this, the world around them falling away. All she can feel is Alex, pressed against her, gently but protective at the same time. 

When Alex pulls back a moment later, just enough to look at Sam, Sam feels lightheaded but she meets the eyes watching her. 

“Alex, I,” Sam starts to explain when there is another knock on the door and she instantly takes a step back, putting a gap between them again.

“Sheriff Danvers,” Agent Henshaw says as he steps into the office. He glances from Sam to Alex, a thoughtful look on his face, before he steps farther into the room. “I just wanted to thank you again for the hospitality.”

“It was my pleasure,” Alex says with a nod, feeling like she needs to catch her breath. “I’m not sure we would have been able to work all this out without you and your team,” Alex glances at Sam quickly. 

“That’s what we’re here for,” Henshaw smiles, “but we do need to head out soon. Unfortunately there’s always more cases waiting for us.”

“I understand,” Alex says, pushing off from her desk. “If you need anything else from us, don’t hesitates to asks.”

“We will,” Henshaw nods as they all walk out of the office together, “and Agent Arias will let you know if we find anything linking the other murders back here as well,” Henshaw adds looking at Sam. A small smile passes across his face when he notices the slight flush on both his agent and the Sheriff.

“Absolutely,” Sam agrees looking at Henshaw with a nod.

“I’m also extending your sister’s leave,” Henshaw adds as they walk into the living room so Kara can hear, “Seeing that she rally didn’t get to use any of yet.”

“Thank you sir,” Kara says from her spot on the couch, Emma in her lap and Lena by her side.

“You’ve more than earned it,” he says with a smile, “As for the rest of us, we shouldn’t impose on your hospitability any longer.”

“I’ll walk you out,” Alex offers as the team begins putting their coats back on. She notices that Olsen and Maggie shake hands and share a smile, _Guess they worked things out_.

“Thank you again,” Alex says a few moments later, standing on the sidewalk in front of her home. Brainy and Olsen had already climbed into the SUVs, leaving just Alex, Sam and Henshaw. Alex offers her hand to the agent in charge again and he shakes it firmly.

“If you’re ever up for a challenge,” Henshaw says with a smile, “we could always use more good agents on this team.”

Alex chuckles, “I appreciate that sir, but I think working with my sister everyday might be a bit too much for me.”

“Fair enough,” he chuckles as he steps away leaving just Alex and Sam standing on the sidewalk together. 

“I’m glad I decided to call your team in,” Alex says after a moment.

“They did a good job,” Sam agrees with a nod.

“That too,” Alex says with a slightly awkward smile, “I meant, I’m glad I had the chance to meet you Sam.”

Sam can’t help the smile that spreads across her face hearing those words, “So am I.”

“I’ll be coming to visit Kara and Lena for Christmas,” Alex says carefully, “hopefully I’ll see you then.”

“Count on it,” Sam says with a smile as she takes a few steps backwards, towards the SUV waiting for her, “after all, you still owe me dinner.”

With that she disappears into the SUV and it pulls away, Alex holding a hand up in goodbye, as she watches them drive down the street.

A moment later her sister is at her side, throwing her arm around Alex’s shoulders, “Come on sis, I’ve got another ten days to harass you and I don’t plan on wasting a minute of it.”

“Can’t wait,” Alex says with a big smile. 

-The End-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's a wrap!!! Thank you all so much for sticking with me through this story. You guys have been the best and I hope I delivered a story that you all enjoyed.  
Now, there's been some talk about a second story and I have already begun work on an outline so it will take some time. In that time though I will be publishing other works and I really want to hear from you guys. Suggestions and things you'd like to see in a sequel, like questions that may not have been answered fully or characters you'd like to see, please feel free to message me. I have both a tumblr (justbecause8101) and a twitter (Jess02306207) so stop by and say hi!!  
Thanks again for all your support, you guys have no idea how much it means.


End file.
